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22 September 2023 / Richard Marshall , Kate Bridgland , Oliver Cooke
Issue: 8041 / Categories: Features , Criminal , Fraud
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The UK financial crime regime: fit for purpose? (Pt 3)

138502
Rounding up their series on economic crime in the UK, Kate Bridgland, Oliver Cooke & Richard Marshall assess the potential of the proposed ‘failure to prevent fraud’ offence
  • The government is proposing a new ‘failure to prevent fraud’ offence for large organisations.
  • While the new provisions are narrower in scope than many have called for, it would nonetheless be a welcome development by increasing the protections available for consumers and businesses.

In answer, at least partially, to calls which have existed for some time, particularly since the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010 (BA 2010) and the Criminal Finances Act 2017 (CFA 2017), the government is drafting a new ‘failure to prevent fraud’ offence. Billed as a measure to close loopholes in the existing statutory legislation, some will question whether the move goes far enough to close said loopholes, while others are likely to argue it is a practical, realistic and welcome step. So which is it?

What is proposed?

While

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Firm awards training contracts to paralegals through internal programme

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Private client disputes specialist joins commercial litigation team

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Cumbria firm appoints new head of residential property

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
Family law must shift from conflict-driven litigation to child-centred problem-solving, according to a major new report. Writing in NLJ this week, Caroline Bowden of Anthony Gold outlines findings showing overwhelming support for reform, with 92% agreeing lawyers owe duties to children as well as clients
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