The seriousness of white collar crime should not be underestimated as these offenses frequently involve large sums of money together with an element of breach of trust and often with the involvement of co-conspirators. The offense of conspiracy carries with it a potential life sentence..." conspiracy is an agreement between two or more people to carry out a criminal purpose, whether that purpose is an end in itself or a means to an end."

These cases are usually complicated and may involve the analysis of thousands of documents by specialist police officers over a period of years. A conviction can lead to a sentence of imprisonment even if the offender has no previous record of criminal convictions. If you have been accused of an offense of this nature you need to be absolutely sure that the firm of solicitors that you instruct to represent you in court know what they are doing and that they have the track record and experience to properly present your defence. If you are being investigated or have been arrested or charged you need to know that your lawyers have the expertise to handle the most demanding cases including:-

corporate fraud

Department of Trade and Industry cases

VAT and Inland Revenue investigations

accounting investigations

mortgage fraud

large scale fraud against financial institutions

charities fraud

Legal Aid for the defence of white collar crime charges in the Magistrates Court is available without a means test and in the Crown Court legal aid will be granted provided that the court is satisfied that the interests of justice are served by publicly funding a defence team. In these cases the interests of justice test may be satisfied in the following circumstances:-

if there is likely to be a sentence of imprisonment if convicted

if mental or physical disability or language problems cause difficulties in understanding the proceedings

if the outcome of a guilty plea or verdict could lead to termination of employment for appeals against decisions of the courts

for proceedings relating to allegations of contempt of court

If you are under investigation or have been arrested or charged with an offense you need to be sure that your solicitor has the expertise and experience to protect you from the loss of your liberty. Serious fraud defence is a specialized area of legal work and it is in your interests to be represented by an expert.