BCL Solicitors LLP
Richard is a partner specialising in corporate crime, regulatory investigations (including ESG compliance) and financial crime. He has extensive experience representing companies and individuals in relation to the most serious, complex and high-profile contentious matters. He is instructed from the early stages of cases to provide proactive advice regarding crisis management, large internal and external investigations, regulators’ powers, corporate co-operation, interviews under caution, prosecutions and associated proceedings such as inquests.
He advises regarding a broad range of offences, such as corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, health and safety, food safety and hygiene (acting for Michelin starred restaurant groups and high street name food businesses), environmental (he advised in relation to the largest ever investigation by the Environment Agency), fire safety and trading. He also advises regarding financial offences such as fraud, bribery, insider dealing (he represented a defendant in the largest and most complex investigation into insider dealing ever conducted by the FCA), market manipulation and money laundering. He is frequently instructed in cases which require technical expertise in overlapping areas of business crime and regulation, for example joint police and Health and Safety Executive investigations and allegations of regulatory breaches combined with financial crime such as food and environmental fraud. The nature of his cases often involves the exercise of regulators’ powers (e.g. dawn raids, compelled document requests and enforcement notices).
His caseload includes matters being investigated and prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive, Environment Agency, Food Standards Agency, Local Authorities, Fire and Rescue Authorities, Serious Fraud Office, Financial Conduct Authority, Information Commissioner’s Office and Crown Prosecution Service.