Richard Sallybanks

Practice Areas

Richard Sallybanks, a partner in BCL for over 20 years and the firm’s Managing Partner, specialises in complex business crime and regulatory defence work, and has been involved in numerous UK and international business crime investigations and prosecutions. Clients describe him as “very wise, with a cool head, an enormous ability to master the detail of a case and a great tactical brain, an invaluable asset to any defence”.

His core practice is defending senior executives who are suspects in investigations, and his current and recent SFO experience includes the Petrofac, Airbus, Barclays Qatar, Alstom and Kaupthing Bank investigations as well as leading the team which successfully defended Tesco’s former Commercial Director on charges involving an alleged £250m accounting fraud. In the financial sector he has acted for bankers, brokers, traders and senior executives in criminal and regulatory investigations, by the FCA and overseas authorities, including in relation to allegations of money laundering, insider dealing and market abuse. He also advises companies and individuals in their capacity as witnesses to matters under investigation.

Many of his cases are cross-border and Richard is experienced in managing and co-ordinating teams of lawyers in multi-jurisdictional investigations, including the US, France, Switzerland and India. Many of his clients are High Net Worth Individuals / International Private Clients who Richard advises in connection with the implications of overseas criminal investigations, including the mutual legal assistance regime, extradition and Interpol.

Richard is ranked by Chambers UK in: Financial Crime: Individuals – London (Band 1); Financial Crime: High Net Worth Individuals – UK (Band 1); and POCA work and Asset Forfeiture (Band 1):

"Richard is a superb solicitor," say his clients. "He's very calm and you get a real sense that everything is under control and they can stop panicking. He has a very serious understanding of the law and the client."

"He has an unusual background in both commercial law and serious crime, so if you need a solicitor to act in an SFO corporate crime raid, he is your man; he knows everything about companies and everything about criminal cases…"

“He’s thoughtful, exceptionally intelligent and he has a forensic eye for detail without losing the bigger picture……He’s strategically extremely astute, he has great judgment under pressure and he’s also very commercially savvy.”

Career

Richard joined BCL in 1995. He was made a partner in 1999 and is now the firm’s Managing Partner. Prior to joining BCL, Richard trained and qualified at (now) CMS, including time spent in CMS’ Hong Kong office, with an associated firm in Germany and on secondment at a financial regulator.

Professional Memberships

The Law Society; International Bar Association; American Bar Association; Association of Regulatory & Disciplinary Lawyers; British Russian Law Association; Fraud Lawyers Association.

Publications

He is regularly quoted in the press on key issues in business crime.

https://globalinvestigationsreview.com/article/sfo-reviews-pile-the-pressure

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/outsourcing-is-sfos-latest-debate-vrk9k3xcp

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/sfo-head-lisa-osofsky-faces-questions-over-investigators-failings-lmxp8bj6k

https://www.law360.com/articles/1414346/the-biggest-uk-corporate-crime-decisions-of-2021-so-far

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/fraudbusters-and-their-methods-in-the-dock-after-failed-serco-trial-q096cwl9g