Serious Fraud Offices low conviction rate
A written Ministerial statement was released on June 10 concerning the Serious Fraud Office (SFO).
A written Ministerial statement was released on June 10 concerning the Serious Fraud Office (SFO).
Former New York Prosecutor Jessica de Grazia had been commissioned in March 2007 by the then Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, and former director of the SFO, Robert Wardle, to review the working practices of the SFO.
To support her review Ms de Grazia compared the SFO with two prosecutors offices in the US and looked in detail at the internal workings of the SFO.
She also looked at external factors which she saw as having an impact the effectiveness of the SFO.
The report pointed to the SFOs five-year average conviction rate of 61 per cent which was down from 82 per cent four years earlier. In contrast many prosecutors in the US have rates consistently in excess of 90 per cent.
At the heart of the problem the report identified the pre-trial disclosure rules in which the law encourages the defence to engage in a war of attrition in order to derail a prosecution through an abuse of process application
However the Attorney General does not agree with the conclusion that the way to address disclosure concerns is to return to the position prior to the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996. It has however accepted many recommendations from the review including consulting on proposals for a framework of plea negotiation in fraud cases.
The full ministerial statement can be found at
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080610/wmstext/80610m0001.htm