Money laundering barristers.
Defence counsel for money laundering allegations under Part 7 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, from an account freezing order or a first police interview through to Crown Court trial, sentence and confiscation.
Money laundering is now one of the most frequently charged economic offences in England and Wales, and the people charged with it are not who most people picture. They include students whose accounts were used by someone they met online, small business owners who took a cash payment from the wrong customer, accountants and solicitors whose files were used by a client, and professional launderers moving money for organised crime. The law treats all of them under the same sections, so the defence has to draw the distinction that the statute does not.
Clerk&Counsel places instructions with criminal barristers who defend money laundering allegations regularly. They understand how the prosecution constructs a criminal property case from banking data, how suspicion is inferred from transaction patterns, and how a properly presented account of legitimate provenance can end a case before charge. Every barrister we place is regulated by the Bar Standards Board and is instructed on written terms agreed in advance.
We act at the earliest stage as well as the last. If your account has been frozen, if you have received an invitation to a voluntary interview, or if your business has been contacted about a customer relationship, the correct response now materially affects the outcome later. Contact the clerks and we will put you in front of counsel who has answered the same question many times before.
Money laundering matters we defend.
The barristers on the panel act for individuals, professionals and businesses across the full range of Part 7 work:
- Concealing, disguising, converting or transferring criminal property contrary to section 327.
- Entering into or becoming concerned in an arrangement contrary to section 328, which is the section most often used against professionals and intermediaries.
- Acquisition, use and possession of criminal property contrary to section 329, including money mule prosecutions.
- Failure to disclose in the regulated sector under sections 330 to 332, and tipping off under section 333A.
- Prosecutions and enforcement under the Money Laundering Regulations for inadequate systems, customer due diligence failures and unregistered activity.
- Cryptocurrency laundering allegations, including cases built on blockchain tracing evidence.
- Cash based businesses accused of integrating criminal proceeds through takings, and hawala and informal value transfer allegations.
- Account freezing and forfeiture proceedings in the Magistrates Court under the Criminal Finances Act 2017.
- Confiscation proceedings following conviction, where the benefit figure is often calculated on the entire sum passing through an account.
- Advice to solicitors, accountants and estate agents on suspicious activity reporting, consent and the conduct of a client relationship under suspicion.
Where these cases are won.
The first question is whether the property was criminal property at all. Prosecutors sometimes proceed on an inference drawn from an unusual pattern of banking activity without ever establishing an underlying offence to a criminal standard. Cash intensive trades, family lending, informal community credit arrangements and legitimate but poorly documented business income all look irregular on a spreadsheet and are all lawful.
The second is knowledge and suspicion. Suspicion is a low threshold but it is not the same as a failure to ask questions with the benefit of hindsight. What a defendant was told, what they were shown, and what a person in their position would reasonably have made of it are all matters of evidence, and they are frequently the whole trial.
The third is role. Sentencing outcomes in money laundering cases vary enormously depending on where in the chain the defendant sat, whether they profited, and whether they were directed by others. A carefully evidenced account of exploitation, coercion or minimal benefit can move a case from a substantial custodial sentence to a suspended one. That work begins with the papers, not on the morning of the hearing.
Instructing counsel.
Contact the clerks with a short summary: what you have been told, which agency is involved, whether an account has been frozen, and the next date. We treat the conversation as confidential and we do not charge for it. Where we can help, we shortlist counsel with directly relevant experience and confirm a fixed fee in writing before anything begins.
For regulated businesses, we can place counsel for a written advice on exposure, on the adequacy of reporting to date, and on how to conduct or exit a client relationship without committing a further offence. Written advice of that kind is frequently the difference between a regulatory conversation and a criminal one.
Once you accept the fee, a client care letter sets out scope and timetable and you deal with counsel directly from that point. The clerks manage listings, papers and conferences in the background, which is what good clerking is for.
Specialist areas within this practice.
- Serious Fraud Barristers
SFO, FCA and complex fraud defence from investigation to trial.
- Proceeds of Crime Barristers
Confiscation, restraint, forfeiture and civil recovery under POCA.
- HMRC Fraud Barristers
Tax fraud investigations, cheating the revenue and Code of Practice 9.
- Drug Offences Barristers
Supply and importation cases that commonly carry a laundering count.
Instruct a money laundering barrister.
Send the interview invitation, charge sheet or freezing order and the next date in the case. A clerk will respond with shortlisted counsel and a written fixed fee, in confidence.
Common questions.
What are the main money laundering offences?
Sections 327 to 329 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 create the principal offences of concealing, arranging and acquiring criminal property. Sections 330 to 333 create the regulated sector offences of failing to disclose and tipping off. There are also offences under the Money Laundering Regulations aimed at businesses that fail to maintain adequate systems and controls.
Do the prosecution have to prove where the money came from?
Not precisely. They must prove the property was criminal property and that you knew or suspected it was. They do not have to identify the underlying offence with the detail many people expect, which is why an irregular criminal property allegation is easier to bring than it looks and why the defence usually focuses on knowledge and suspicion rather than provenance.
I am a money mule. Is that a defence?
Allowing your account to be used, often after a social media approach, is prosecuted as a money laundering offence and is treated seriously by the courts. Genuine coercion, exploitation and modern slavery are recognised defences, and youth and naivety are strong mitigation, but none of that works unless it is evidenced and raised properly at the right stage.
I run a regulated business and made a suspicious activity report. Am I protected?
An authorised disclosure and appropriate consent provide a statutory defence if the procedure is followed correctly and in time. The risk lies in reports made late, reports made after the transaction, or a failure to disclose where a reasonable person in the regulated sector would have had grounds for suspicion. Advice on this should be taken before any further transaction is completed.
What sentences do money laundering offences attract?
The maximum for the principal offences is fourteen years. Sentence is driven by the amount involved, the defendant's role, whether the conduct was persistent and whether the underlying criminality was known. Low level account provision at the bottom of the guideline can attract a community order, while professional laundering for organised crime routinely attracts substantial custody.
Can I instruct a money laundering barrister directly?
Yes for advice, written representations, interview attendance and many hearings. Contested Crown Court trials with heavy financial disclosure usually work better with a solicitor instructed alongside counsel, and the clerks will give you a straight answer about which route your case needs.