Articles

Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWO’s) came into force on 31 January 2018 as part of the Criminal Finances Act 2017, which is an amendment to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA).

Online reviews are an increasingly important tool in modern consumers’ spending decisions. In most cases committing to making almost any purchase without first consulting online reviews would be considered extremely foolhardy. However just how reliable are the reviews upon which we are basing these choices?

Constructing a profile of someone’s international financial footprint can be a particularly challenging task, especially in instances where concealment tactics have been deliberately applied. Uncovering assets and interests of sophisticated fraudsters who hide behind complex and opaque offshore business structures can often be difficult to demystify.

Upon its introduction a year ago, the UK became only the third country in the world, after Australia and France, to insist on plain packaging for all tobacco products in an effort to tackle smoking rates, improve public health, and reduce the number of young people taking up the habit.

In 2017, 3 in 10 UK law firms were affected by cyber attacks. Last year saw the spotlight on ‘Friday afternoon fraud’, a conveyancing scam that targets solicitors’ email accounts and, according to the SRA, cost the legal profession at least £7m in 2016.

Counterfeiting is a global industry in its own right and affects most brands and products within, and outside of the EU. International trade in counterfeit goods is estimated to make up approximately 2.5% of all global commerce, worth approximately USD500 billion.