Search
PPI – end of an era or a new chapter?
The FOS recently released its latest six-monthly figures showing the types and levels of complaints received by financial institutions.
Read moreHMRC run contrary arguments before the First-tier Tribunal!
In the recent case of Cobb v HMRC [2012] UK FTT 40 (TC), the First-tier Tribunal ('FTT') said that HMRC should be able to suspend all or part of a penalty imposed for a careless inaccuracy in a tax return of an individual...
Read moreWas Lehmans' collapse unforeseeable? The High Court said it was - but FOS disagrees
The courts and FOS are now headed down very different paths in their approach to credit crunch losses suffered by clients of regulated firms.
Read moreFSA delivers on AML promise
Following its thematic review and report on "Banks’ management of high money-laundering risk situations" published in June last year, the FSA on Monday announced that it has fined Coutts £8.75 million for anti-money laundering (AML) control failings.
Read moreICO fines Midlothian Council £140,000 - ICO's highest ever fine for data breaches
The Information Commissioner's Office (the "ICO") has fined Midlothian Council £140,000 for five separate security breaches, which involved accidental disclosure of confidential and sensitive personal data about children and carers to the wrong recipients.
Read moreSupreme Court widens scope of 'client money'
The Supreme Court yesterday ruled that client money held in un-segregated accounts should be treated the same as client money held in segregated accounts, ...
Read moreLeading regulatory and corporate crime silk to lead the AADB
Yesterday the FRC announced the appointment of Gareth Rees QC to the position of Executive Counsel to the Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board (AADB).
Read moreMoU between FCA and FOS: will complaints handling become more risky?
The FOS published a draft MoU with the future FCA that has blurred an already hazy line between the ombudsman and regulator.
Read moreWhen is a document within a taxpayer's "possession or power"?
HMRC have a range of powers available to them under Schedule 36 of the Finance Act 2008 ("Schedule 36") to require persons to produce documents and information and to inspect premises.
Read moreInquiry into the SFO better late than never
Following the collapse of some high profile cases, Dominic Grieve, the Attorney General, has ordered an inquiry to review the SFO's casework and broader issues, including how the SFO chooses which cases to investigate.
Read moreCausation - the multi-billion pound question
The FSA's £1.5m fine imposed on Santander UK plc yesterday raises again the question of whether causation should be required for firms in the financial services industry to be liable to their clients.
Read moreChief Executive of Ann Summers gets privacy injunction
Mr Justice Tugendhat has today handed down a short judgment explaining why he made an interlocutory order to prevent the publication of private and confidential information about Jacqueline Gold, the high-profile Chief Executive of Ann Summers.
Read moreCabinet minister's 17-year-old son gets privacy injunction but not anonymity
The son of Caroline Spelman, the Environment Secretary, has obtained an injunction against the publishers of the Daily Star Sunday.
Read moreUnknown Associates
How much evidence do you need to substantiate a claim for tax relief?
Read moreStrasbourg Rulings on Two Personal Privacy Claims
The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights yesterday handed down its much anticipated decisions in the important privacy cases Axel Springer and von Hannover.
Read moreFOS undeterred in its plans to publish firm names in Ombudsman decisions, despite concerns
The FOS has released a summary of responses to its September 2011 paper "publishing ombudsman decisions: next steps" confirming its plan to publish all Ombudsman decisions.
Read moreEinhorn not pleased as Punch with insider dealing fine of £7.2m
If you honestly believe that information given to you is not inside information but the FSA thinks your belief is unreasonably held, then you lay yourself open to sanctions for market abuse, notwithstanding that you have no intention to commit market abuse.
Read moreShould Demi Moore's emergency call have been kept private?
When the actress Demi Moore needed emergency medical care at her home in Los Angeles last week, her friend called 911.
Read moreA Voyage of Discovery: two recent Court of Appeal decisions
In December of last year, two differently constituted panels of the Court of Appeal handed down important judgments on the discovery provisions contained in sections 29 and 30B Taxes Management Act 1970 ('TMA 1970').
Read moreDamages for unauthorised access to medical records
A judge has awarded £12,500 to a man whose pre-existing personality disorder was exacerbated after his partner accessed his medical records and challenged him about his mental illness.
Read moreOnline privacy rights strengthened by EU data protection reform
The EU has proposed important reforms to data protection laws. The reforms have two aims: increased online privacy rights and boosting the digital economy by removing or easing some unnecessary administrative burdens.
Read moreBuilding Information Modelling
This is the first of three blogs about Building Information Models, or BIM. This blog will explain what a BIM is and why it is significant. We will then look at the risks associated with BIM; finally, we will provide some practical advice on how these risks can be tackled.
Read moreEnding legal aid for millionaire defendants
Readers may not be aware of an extraordinary anomaly in our criminal justice system which has led to a significant drain on the legal aid fund.
Read moreDividends paid to 'innocent' shareholders by 'criminal' companies vulnerable to civil recovery
When Mabey & Johnson Limited's parent received a dividend, little did it think that it would be vulnerable to civil recovery following the conviction of its subsidiary's employees for corruption and breaches of UN sanctions.
Read moreFOS supplementary PPI case fee suggests inefficiencies of scale
The National Audit Office's report published yesterday into the FOS' 'efficient handling of financial services complaints' challenged FOS to 'achieve efficiencies of scale' but, ...
Read moreTribunal criticises HMRC's unreasonable behaviour and awards costs to the taxpayer
In Nicholas Deluca v HMRC (TC01422) the First-tier Tribunal (Sir Stephen Oliver QC) criticised HMRC's conduct and directed that they make a contribution of half the costs incurred by Mr Deluca in connection with an HMRC enquiry into his tax return and his subsequent appeal to the Tribunal.
Read moreThe 22 more free FOS cases of Christmas
On the twelfth day of Christmas, our Ombudsman service gave to us a proposal that would see smaller and medium sized firms given many more free complaints before a case fee applies.
Read more'Tentacles across the system': Joint Committee believes in monsters too…
The report published in December by the Joint Committee on the Draft Financial Services Bill offered no festive cheer:
Read moreHappy New maximum award limit
It is a sobering thought that FOS complaints made from January will be subject to the increased maximum award limit of £150k.
Read morePublic Accounts Committee Report – HMRC criticised for 'cosy' deals
The report of the Public Accounts Committee ('the Committee') into alleged 'sweetheart' deals reached by HMRC with some of the largest companies in the UK was published yesterday.
Read moreGoldman Sachs, Whistleblowing and HMRC – the sorry saga continues!
Osita Mba is a solicitor working at HMRC's Solicitor's Office.
Read moreNo more nodding NEDs - FSA to make non-execs consumer champions
NEDs (and their D&O insurers) will be increasingly exposed to regulatory risk because of the FSA's new guidance.
Read moreHMRC criticised again over delay in issuing late filing penalties
Readers may recall that in a recent blog I commented on the case of Hok Limited v Revenue & Customs Commissioners (TC1286) .
Read moreBox on, ITV: OFCOM knocks out TV advertising industry review and regulatory change
In contrast to this week's OFT decision that it was an 'administrative priority' to conduct a market study into aspects of the UK private motor insurance industry, OFCOM has declined to launch a similar market investigation into TV advertising for reasons of proportionality.
Read moreOFT gives green light to market study into private motor insurance
The OFT has this morning confirmed that it is launching a market study into the UK private motor insurance industry following the call for evidence made in September.
Read moreYou can't rely on it, but you can't ignore it!
In furtherance of its statutory objective to reduce financial crime, on Friday the FSA has published a policy statement on financial crime - PS11/15 (the Guide) which has immediate effect.
Read moreUnderneath the mistletoe… UCIS review due in 2012
Another Christmas treat the industry will be glad to put off until the New Year was revealed by the publication of the FSA's Board minutes for July.
Read moreOld business, old customers, old liabilities - and HSBC is still paying
In today's news it is reported that HSBC will not only have to meet the costs of four file reviews, the FSA Enforcement process, the resulting fine of £10.5m and compensation of nearly £30m
Read moreMore Swiss controversy!
I commented on the UK/Swiss tax deal in my blog of 26 August 2011.
Read moreBans, bans and more bans
For the fourth time in as many weeks, the FSA has curtailed the selling of a product under the guise of guidance.
Read moreMaking the punishment fit the crime
The FSA's Final Notices are now littered with directors of financial services firms personally fined and made the subject of prohibition orders, not only for dishonesty but also for lacking competence and capability in the management of their businesses.
Read moreIf at first you don't succeed, give up
Not deterred by the Court of Appeal's recent ruling that the names of junior AML staff are not disclosable under standard disclosure, Messrs Shah and Mahabeer continued their appeal against the following decisions.
Read moreFSA's insistence on senior management responsibility tested before the Tribunal
Two years on from the FSA's £8 million fine of UBS AG for systems and controls failures in breach of Principles 2 (skill, care and diligence) and 3 (adequate risk management systems)
Read moreWhat a difference a week makes
This week has seen a number of unwanted early Christmas presents for the IFA industry.
Read moreGeneral Anti-Avoidance Rule ('GAAR') – will the 'centre ground' of tax planning be safe?
On 21 November the final report of the GAAR Study Group ('the Group'), a committee of the tax world's 'great and the good', chaired by Graham Aaronson QC, was published.
Read moreA reasonable approach to insuring your cat?
The FSA has taken RBS' insurance firms to task under the UTCCR for the terms of their pet insurance. RBS' wordings had said they would not pay "any costs that we do not consider reasonable or necessary".
Read moreTraded life policy ban – FSA jumps the gun
I commented earlier in the month on the FSA guidance on product design covering payment protection and structured products.
Read moreRPC evidence submitted to Joint Committee on the Draft Financial Services Bill
Following up on our concern about FSA proposals to change the law of causation insofar as it applies to financial services ...
Read moreSHIPS 2 - victory for the taxpayer!
The Supreme Court has refused HMRC's application for permission to appeal against the Court of Appeal's decision in HMRC v Mayes [2011] EWCA CIV 407, a case involving tax arrangements marketed as "Ships 2".
Read moreBribery Act sentence misses the mark
The much reported first prosecution under the Bribery Act proved to be all but an irrelevance.
Read more