Mark Rainsford QC

Year of call: 1985
Silk: 2006

(Also called to the Bar of Grand Cayman & Turks and Caicos pro hac)

Mark Rainsford QC is a barrister specialising in corporate wrongdoing, internal company investigations, financial crime, and civil and commercial fraud cases as well as international asset recovery work.

Mark defends companies and individual directors on issues regarding bribery and corruption, cartel fraud, health and safety and gross negligence manslaughter, director disqualification and in relation to attempts to extort money from corporates by blackmail. He prosecutes, defends and conducts tribunal hearings in cases concerning fraud, carbon credit carousel fraud, insider trading, market abuse, diversion fraud, “Ponzi” schemes and provides specialist advice to individuals facing investigation by regulators including the FSA, SFO, Competition Commission, Department of Justice and other overseas law enforcement authorities.

Mark advises companies with regard to compliance issues and has special expertise in the field of asset recovery and cross border asset recovery.

Notable cases in recent months include:

Mark is currently defending a finance house that is being pursued in by an oil company in the Chancery Division of the High Court, in connection with an alleged $100m loan and $10m advance fee fraud.
December 2011: obtained freezing orders and disclosure orders in the Commercial Court on behalf of a Sovereign State after carbon credit awards were hijacked from a European stock exchange and registered at the London Stock Exchange, from where spot trading commenced over night. Dissipation of the proceeds of the awards was prevented and assets seized.
In December 2011: negotiated the first and thus far only civil recovery order and immunity from prosecution agreement in connection with a Commission of Inquiry and political corruption investigation ongoing in the Turks & Caicos Islands.
In October 2011 defending in confiscation proceedings where it was alleged that the defendant had a benefit figure of £30m principally held in the form of hidden assets. No hidden assets finding was made and the defendant was ordered to pay £2m from the sale of retrained assets.
Advising a corporate entity in the insurance sector in relation to unwarranted demands by blackmail being made against them.
Upholding management receivership and restraint orders following applications to discharge worldwide freezing orders over the assets of a large corporate entity alleged to have committed fraud on a substantial scale.
Advising the Board of a global multi-national company in relation to compliance issues regarding the Bribery Act 2010, international sanction regimes, dawn raid policies, and internal investigations.
Defending the Managing Director of R2PK, a substantial money transmitting company, in relation to £50m cash remitted to Pakistan.

2010

R – v – Rastogi. Leading counsel for the former Chairman and CEO of RBG Metals plc. in £1.2 billion hidden assets confiscation proceedings. This related to a multi- billion pound fraud on lending institutions in Europe and the USA and resulted in an order for the defendant to pay £20m.
Defended in a substantial diversion fraud. The case was dropped following submissions relating to abuse of process in the context disclosure failings.
Recovered £5m from a serious acquisitive criminal following his conviction for money laundering offences and obtained the first Financial Reporting Order applied for by the Metropolitan Police.
Successfully defended an International law firm in connection with illegal facilitation payments and

2009

R – v – Simons. Leading Kennedy Talbot in hidden assets confiscation proceedings following the conviction of the defendant in two missing trader vat frauds with a combined revenue loss of £50 million.
Successfully defended an international corporate law firm following a dawn raid on their premises following an allegation that they made facilitation payments to overseas foreign officials in order to speed up routine visa applications made on behalf a global accounting firm. Leading the internal investigation and preparing and presenting a successful rebuttal.
Advising the former non-executive chairman of an AIM listed company following unproven allegations of breach of fiduciary relationship.

2008 and earlier

R –v – A. Recovering £5 million of assets from the head of a serious and acquisitive criminal gang in confiscation proceedings, working with the Specialist Crime Directorate at New Scotland Yard. The case concerned extortion, blackmail, drugs trafficking, carousel fraud, money laundering and many other crimes
Leading two junior counsel prosecuting a £55.5 million missing trader intra-community carousel fraud.
Successfully defended the principal defendant in two separate trials in Grand Cayman.
Leading counsel for the appellant tried in the first MITIC Vat fraud. Successfully argued that following a trial lasting six months, the judge had invited unjustifiable adverse inferences from the evidence to be drawn against the defendant.
Instructed for the Respondents in an appeal following conviction for a £20 million diversion fraud case. Alleged revenue loss in region £200 million.
Prosecuted the first agricultural flat rate addition fraud.
Appeared in the House of Lords appeal of R. v. Rimmington and Goldstein, concerning the scope of the common law offence of public nuisance.
Retained by the Attorney- General in an overview role concerning London City Bond. This followed the discovery of serious disclosure failures in fraud cases. Reviewing the safety of convictions in 44 major fraud cases.
Defending a journalist and ocean yacht master charged with importing £1 billion of cocaine. (4 tons).
Successfully defending an arms dealer in relation to the importation into Heathrow Airport of military grade machine guns
Advising a global multinational company in the luxury goods sector in relation to serious breaches of AML compliance.
Defending the chairman of a marketing and advertising agency in the Abbey National Bank nine -month corruption trial at the Central Criminal Court. The issues included commercial public interest immunity and breach of fiduciary relationship by a director.

Mark has also practised as a common lawyer in all manner of cases in the County Court, the Queen’s Bench Division on interlocutory applications, judicial review, trials, and claims on the Masters’ Corridor and at arbitrations. He has many years experience of appearing before , sitting on and chairing disciplinary tribunals.