Fraud Newsletter 31 – May 2019

June 2, 2019

CASES

S1 Fraud Act- legal duty to disclose: A liability to pay (council tax) is not a liability to notify: there is no legal duty to disclose residence in the absence of s statutory requirement: D [2019] EWCA Crim 209.

SENTENCING AND CONFISCATION

Enforcement of confiscation orders overseas: the relevant 2014 regulations apply to orders whenever made: Moss [2019] EWCA Crim 501.

Higher Culpability involving others in commission of offence (money laundering using joint account with daughter) means involving others in the commission of the offence (step 1), not in other forms of involvement (step 2): Masters [2019] EWCA Crim 650 (Westlaw)

No power under s17 POCA to award private prosecutor’s costs in enforcement proceedings: Re Somaia v Lord Chancellor [2019] EWHC 1227 (QB) (Westlaw)

BILLS, STATUTES & STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS

Communications Data Acquisition Regulations 2019 SI 2019 No 939 in force 17 May 19: amending Investigatory Powers Act 2016 to permit sharing of designated senior officers for communications data acquisition.
Cyber-Attacks (Asset-Freezing) Regulations 2019: SI 2019 No. 956 in force 11 June 19 designed to enforce Council Regulation (EU) 2019/796 re restrictive measures against cyber-attacks against EU or Member States.

Registration of Overseas Entities Bill: HL paper 358: 20 May 19: draft bill to increase transparency of beneficial owners of land in UK.

Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC: relates to restrictions on such data transfers which may be imposed by the EU: 13 May 19.

Directive (EU) 2019/713: Official Journal: 10 May 19: AML provision to deal with digital technology developments and counterfeiting of non-cash payments (e.g. credit cards).

CONSULTATIONS, GUIDANCE, CIRCULARS AND REPORTS

Corporate Transparency and Registry Reform: Consultation on options to enhance the role of Companies House and increase the transparency of UK corporate entities: BEIS: closing date 5 Aug 2019

Deferred prosecution agreements and the interests of justice: a consistency of approach? [2019] Crim. L.R. 486-504.

EU Operational Action Plan 2019: (partly declassified) re criminal finances, money laundering and facilitation of asset recovery: 27 May 19

Government Response to . . Economic Crime AML supervision and sanctions implementation Report: Treasury C’tee Report: HC 2187 7 May 2019

Government response to the House of Lords Select Committee on the Bribery Act 2010. MoJ: CP 96: 13 May 19

National Strategic Assessment of Serious and Organised Crime 2019: NCA: serious and organised crime (SOC) costs UK £37B pa; 37,317 members of 4,542 organised crime gangs in UK in June 18 who increasingly using dark web and other technologies: Russian cyber criminals on increase. UK money laundering estimated at £100B pa. CPS seek £2.7b increase in funding to combat SOC.

Review of adequacy of AML procedures in solicitors undertaking trust and company service provider work: SRA: May 19: 59 firms reviewed; 26 referred for disciplinary procedure; only 10 had submitted SARs in last 2 years, appearing to confirms NCA fears that law firms are not being proactive enough.

Report of the Task Force on Role of Lawyers and International Commercial Structures: IBA-OECD: 20 May 19: key principles for lawyers working on commercial structures as a result of Panama & Paradise Papers including: non-facilitation of illegal conduct; misuse of duties of confidence and privilege; due diligence; illegal client conduct; multijurisdictional risk; use of illegally obtained information; disclosure of beneficial ownership; advertising;