R v O’Brien (Appellant) – Supreme Court

R v O’Brien (Appellant) [2014] UKSC 23 (YouTube)

Supreme Court, 2nd April 2014

Source: www.youtube.com/user/UKSupremeCourt

Regina v Elsayed – WLR Daily

Posted March 14th, 2014 in confiscation, drug offences, law reports, proceeds of crime by tracey

Regina v Elsayed; [2014] EWCA Crim 333;  [2014] WLR (D)  125

‘For the purposes of confiscation proceedings the market value of drugs might vary depending for example on the time at which the drugs were obtained or the capacity or role of the person obtaining them and a judge was entitled to make findings of fact as to what a defendant would do with those drugs, ie sell them as a dealer at street level. Such findings of fact necessarily bore on the value of the property obtained by the defendant.’

WLR Daily, 4th March 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Wright (Robert) – WLR Daily

Posted February 24th, 2014 in confiscation, fees, fraud, law reports, proceeds of crime, sentencing, solicitors by sally

Regina v Wright (Robert) [2014] WLR (D) 84

‘Where an insurance company paid a defendant’s solicitors’ fees, for which he would otherwise have been liable, in connection with a false insurance claim he had made, he obtained a pecuniary advantage as a result of or in connection with his false claim, for the purposes of section 76(5) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Therefore, by section 76(4), those fees formed part of the defendant’s benefit from his criminal conduct for the purposes of any confiscation order made under the 2002 Act.’

WLR Daily, 19th February 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Pace and another – WLR Daily

Posted February 21st, 2014 in appeals, attempts, law reports, proceeds of crime by sally

Regina v Pace and another [2014] EWCA Crim 186; [2014] WLR (D) 81

‘The mens rea of the offence of attempting to conceal, disguise or convert criminal property, contrary to section 327(1) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, required that the defendant knew that the property was criminal property. Mere suspicion of that fact was insufficient.’

WLR Daily, 18th February 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Mackle (Patrick); Regina v Mackle (Plunkett Jude); Regina v Mackle (Benedict); Regina v McLaughlin (Henry) – WLR Daily

Posted February 5th, 2014 in confiscation, consent, joint enterprise, law reports, mistake, proceeds of crime by sally

Regina v Mackle (Patrick); Regina v Mackle (Plunkett Jude); Regina v Mackle (Benedict); Regina v McLaughlin (Henry) [2014] UKSC 5; [2014] WLR (D) 40

‘The fact that a confiscation order had been made by consent did not preclude a defendant from appealing against it on the ground that the consent had been based on a mistake of law as a result of wrong legal advice.’

WLR Daily, 29th January 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Padda – WLR Daily

Regina v Padda [2013] EWCA Crim 2330; [2013] WLR (D) 496

‘Section 22(4)(a) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 preserved an obligation on the court and a discretion to make a confiscation order which was just and in so doing it could take into account all relevant circumstances and had to take into account the legislative policy in favour of maximising the recovery of the proceeds of crime, even from legitimately acquired assets.’

WLR Daily, 12th December 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Confiscation orders take only 26p in every £100 from criminals, NAO finds – The Guardian

‘Confiscation orders designed to ensure crime does not pay provide neither value for money nor a credible deterrent as perpetrators keep all but 26p in every £100 generated by the criminal economy, according to a damning report.’

Full story

The Guardian, 17th December 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Regina v Fields and others – WLR Daily

Regina v Fields and others [2013] EWCA Crim 2042; [2013] WLR (D) 440

“In a joint benefit case, where each defendant was found to have obtained the joint benefit, he was not required by a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to disgorge benefit he had not obtained and a confiscation order made in the amount matching the correctly assessed benefit, was not disproportionate.”

WLR Daily, 14th November 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

National Crime Agency v Szepietowski and another – WLR Daily

Posted October 30th, 2013 in appeals, assets recovery, debts, equity, law reports, mortgages, proceeds of crime by sally

National Crime Agency v Szepietowski and another [2013] UKSC 65; [2013] WLR (D) 408

“The equitable remedy of marshalling was not available where the security held by the second chargee did not secure an underlying personal debt of his to the chargor. Therefore the National Crime Agency, having agreed to take a second mortgage over a property in settlement of its claim that it had been purchased by its owner with the proceeds of crime, could not, when the sale of the property only realised sufficient funds to pay off the debt secured under a first mortgage to a bank, require the bank to enforce its security against another property mortgaged by the owner to that bank.”

WLR Daily, 23rd October 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Szepietowski (Nee Seery) (Appellant) v The National Crime Agency (Respondent) – Supreme Court

Szepietowski (Nee Seery) (Appellant) v The National Crime Agency (Respondent) [2013] UKSC 65 | UKSC 2011/0196 (YouTube)

Supreme Court, 23rd October 2013

Source: www.youtube.com/user/UKSupremeCourt

Landlord handed £75K confiscation order after admitting planning breaches – Local Government Lawyer

Posted October 24th, 2013 in confiscation, landlord & tenant, news, planning, proceeds of crime by tracey

“A landlord who illegally split two houses into flats has been ordered to pay a London council £75,000 under the Proceeds of Crime Act.”

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 23rd October 2013

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Regina v Smith (Kim) – WLR Daily

Posted October 24th, 2013 in appeals, confiscation, gifts, law reports, proceeds of crime, sentencing by tracey

Regina v Smith (Kim): [2013] EWCA Crim 502;   [2013] WLR (D)  398

“In proceedings for a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the fact that an offender would not be able to recover a ‘tainted gift’ from the donee did not mean that the full value of that gift should not be counted towards the recoverable amount pursuant to section 9(1)(b) of the 2002 Act.”

WLR Daily, 8th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Shoplifting secret of the housewife who stole 900 designer handbags – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 1st, 2013 in bail, closed circuit television, news, proceeds of crime, theft by sally

“A housewife is facing jail after she stole more than 900 designer handbags worth up to £500,000 in a crime spree lasting three years.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 30th September 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Couple sentenced over theft of £95,000 from godmother’s life savings – The Independent

Posted September 20th, 2013 in bail, elderly, news, proceeds of crime, sentencing, theft by sally

“A married couple who blew almost £100,000 of a 91-year-old’s life savings on themselves will be sentenced today.”

Full story

The Independent, 20th September 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Serious Organised Crime Agency v Azam – WLR Daily

Serious Organised Crime Agency v Azam [2013] EWCA Civ 970; [2013] WLR (D) 327

“Where a person who was the subject of a property freezing order made under Part 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 applied for the order to be varied so as to permit him to apply some of his assets which were the subject of the order in paying for his legal expenses, he was under no specific burden of proof requiring him to prove that there were no other available assets which could be used for the relevant purpose, such that if he did not discharge the burden his application must fail.”

WLR Daily, 31st July 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Chapman – WLR Daily

Regina v Chapman [2013] EWCA Crim 1370; [2013] WLR (D) 318

“Once an appeal had been constituted by filing a notice of appeal in time or by obtaining an extension of time from the court, the order of the court below was subject to review and not final and the court could not justify refusing to allow the defendant to take advantage of a change in the law which occurred between the filing of the notice of appeal and the hearing itself.”

WLR Daily, 29th July 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Legal Aid cheats to have cars seized to pay costs – Ministry of Justice

Posted July 30th, 2013 in assets recovery, legal aid, news, proceeds of crime by sally

“From today criminals who deliberately cheat the system and leave taxpayers to foot their legal aid bill, despite being able to pay, face having their cars seized.”

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 30th July 2013

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

New measures to clamp down on legal aid cheats – Ministry of Justice

Posted July 30th, 2013 in assets recovery, enforcement, legal aid, news, proceeds of crime by sally

“New measures launched today will see those criminals who deliberately cheat the system and leave taxpayers to foot their legal aid bill, despite being able to pay, face having their cars seized.”

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 30th July 2013

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Convicted criminals can have cars seized under plan to cut legal aid bill – The Guardian

Posted July 30th, 2013 in assets recovery, legal aid, news, proceeds of crime by sally

“Convicted criminals who defy orders to contribute to their legal costs may have their cars seized by the Ministry of Justice and sold at auction from Tuesday.”

Full story

The Guardian, 20th July 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Regina v Austin (Herbert) – WLR Daily

Regina v Austin (Herbert): [2013] EWCA Crim 1028;   [2013] WLR (D)  257

“It was the Crown’s responsibility to carry out the duties of disclosure. Judicial involvement could only properly be triggered by an application under the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 by the prosecutor or by the defence. There was no provision for a trial judge to superintend the decisions of disclosure made by the prosecution on his own motion by inspecting unused material himself.”

WLR Daily, 27th June 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk