Aziz Rahman assesses the challenges facing the SFO

The issues that the Serious Fraud Office needs to address were the subject of an article by Aziz Rahman.

In “The Challenges Facing the SFO’’, Aziz explains the problems that the SFO has been encountering in investigations. His piece was published by Solicitors Journal.

Aziz outlines the role of the SFO and how it was created by the Criminal Justice Act 1987. He then refers to the agency “going through a period where failures outweigh the successes’’ and highlights the problems posed by new matters such as pandemic-related fraud, environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, cryptocurrency and the need to function internationally after Brexit.

His article focuses on the SFO’s disclosure failings in the Unaoil case and explains that it is not the only recent case in which the agency has been found wanting when it comes to disclosure. Aziz also cites the number of cases that the SFO has either dropped or lost.

The limitations that the KBR case placed on the SFO’s ability to secure documents held abroad are also written about by Aziz. He concludes that the SFO may have to make changes to how it operates if it is to prevent further problems.

Aziz's article featured in Solicitors Journal.(Subscription required)