UK Government responds to International Development Committee’s Fourth Report 2016/2017
In October 2016, the International Development Committee put forward 13 recommendations for the improvement of the UK Government efforts to tackle overseas corruption. Last month the UK Government published its response. The Government agreed with seven recommendations: assess the extent of money laundered through the UK and continue to lobbying […]
New crime bill to introduce Unexplained Wealth Orders
The Government is due to publish a new proceeds of crime bill tomorrow, which will introduce Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs), as reported in The Times (paywall). UWOs would allow the police to apply for an order to require individuals to explain their source of wealth where it exceeds their lawful income. […]
Backwards Tracing takes a step forward
The Privy Council recently extended the availability of ‘tracing’ in a novel way to increase the options available to states seeking to recover stolen property. Before this decision a state could only trace property that had been altered, say by sale or transfer, into the proceeds of that alteration if those proceeds did not exist […]
CooleyAR’s summer holiday
The team will be taking August to recuperate after a furious few months blogging and will return in the Autumn. However, before we pack our bags it is worth reflecting on David Cameron’s recent speech in Singapore where he addressed the threat posed by corruption worldwide. We were particularly interested […]
A proposal to extend beneficial ownership rules to UK land-holding foreign companies
A report published today by Global Witness, alleging that an individual with ties to a former Kazakh public official owns large swathes of London, follows much recent interest in the issue of public officials owning property in the UK via secretive corporate structures that conceal their interest. Earlier this month, an Early […]
What states should know about unjust enrichment
We close out our series of tip-sheets on the causes of actions available to states who have been victims of bribery and corruption with a note on unjust enrichment. This is an interesting claim that sets the bar a little lower than some of the previous claims we have reviewed. […]
What states should know about the contractual consequences of bribery
This week’s tip-sheet concerns the remedies available to states where they are party to a contract procured through bribery. We discuss the pros and cons of rescission and termination as well as the reasons why a state may choose to re-negotiate contracts that have been affected by bribery. We also consider the risk […]
What states should know about dishonest assistance
This week’s tip-sheet covers claims for dishonest assistance, which is a claim that can be used to sue third parties who participated in wrongdoing but did not receive the benefit of it. We detail potential defendants and explain the principles that need to be established at court (and those that do […]
What states should know about unlawful means conspiracy
The latest entry in our tip-sheet series deals with unlawful means conspiracy. This claim is useful where multiple parties have been involved in a scheme to corruptly defraud a state. We set out the circumstances when it may arrive and explain what you need to establish when bringing the claim. […]
What states should know about knowing receipt
We have just published our second tip-sheet on the substantive claims available to victims of bribery and corruption, which sets out the key details for a claim in knowing receipt. This claim allows a victim to sue anyone who received the benefit of assets taken in breach of trust, in circumstances where it […]