White collar crime

Contact: Sam Tate

White collar crime

Failure to prevent fraud: key guidance released

The UK Home Office has now published its statutory guidance for the failure to prevent fraud offence. Large organisations have a new set of compliance requirements that are a defence to corporate criminal liability resulting from the frauds of employees, service providers and subsidiaries against third parties, eg greenwashing, mis-selling and knowingly misleading investors.

Our multidisciplinary White Collar Crime and Compliance team have summarised the key practical takeaways from the Home Office's guidance, and outlined how organisations should prepare to ensure they have fully implemented a compliant programme by the time the offence comes into force.

Read the summary here

SFO appoints two new non-executive directors

The SFO has appointed Caroline Firstbrook and Simon McKinnon CB CBE as non-executive directors. They took up their posts on 1 October and will be serving three-year terms.

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Event: the future of financial crime under the new Labour government

Join Lord Peter Hain, Labour peer and former government minister, and Sam Tate, Head of White Collar Crime and Compliance at RPC, on 27 November 2024 as they discuss the practical implications of the future of financial crime prevention and enforcement under the new Labour government.

SFO changes to fraud referrals process

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is updating its fraud reporting process. The public must now report fraud cases to Action Fraud instead of directly to the SFO. This aligns the SFO's procedures with the 43 national police forces in England and Wales, as well as the National Crime Agency. The change aims to improve coordination in responding to emerging fraud threats and build a more comprehensive national picture of fraud. Members of the public reporting individual cases of fraud should use the Action Fraud website or call centre. Allegations of serious corruption, bribery, or corporate whistleblowing should still be reported directly to the SFO.

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