David Spens

David Spens QC has a formidable reputation for securing acquittals against the odds, defending the most high-profile, sensitive and complex cases concerning business crime, health and safety, serious sexual offences, murder and terrorism. Formerly a Treasury Counsel, David has defended exclusively for the last 22 years. David has a successful track record in defending fraud and money-laundering, and has developed a niche practice defending individuals accused of bribery and corruption in the UK and overseas. He is instructed to defend â senior manager in R v Reynolds, the SFO's prosecution of Alstom Power for bribery in Lithuania (Operation Yuletide); in R v Forrester he secured notable acquittals for a sales manager accused by SFO of bribery in three African states. David is regularly instructed in cases which involve manslaughter by gross negligence in the context of health and safety legislation. ln the field of serious sexual offences, David has particular expertise in historical matters. He is currently instructed to represent a philanthropist accused of historical sexual abuse in London and the Caribbean. Since defending Learco Chindamo, the youth convicted of murdering headmaster Philip Lawrence, David has been instructed in many murder cases, most involving joint enterprise; he has special expertise in cross-examining pathologists and forensic psychiatrists.