Case Studies

I was instructed as a Solicitor-Advocate to represent another solicitor's client in the High Court charged with rape.

The evidence consisted of the female complainer who alleged she was abducted from outside a block of flats and dragged into a lift into a high rise flat, where she was raped until she was able to flee. She immediately reported the matter to her father and the police. Her distress was obvious for her father and the police to see. She was examined by a forensic police doctor who noted fresh injuries consistent with rape. There was also DNA evidence consistent with sexual intercourse. This was enough evidence for a jury to be entitled to convict.

At the trial, the complainer maintained the account she gave in her original statement. However, on cross examination, we were able to demonstrate that her evidence about being abducted and dragged up to the flat was flawed, because of CCTV evidence we secured, showing our client's mother returning from work at the time when she maintained the abduction occurred. She eventually conceded she had attended our client's flat willingly and that she bore an attraction to our client.

After the police doctor, in cross examination, conceded that the injuries were equally consistent with consensual activity, we were able to persuade the jury to find our client not guilty. This was a fraught case for our client, as the evidence was pointing to guilt until fully broken down and tested in court.

This client contacted us, accused of the embezzlement of hundreds of thousands of pounds from her elderly mother's bank accounts when she was in a care home. The Crown had possession of all bank accounts detailing the nature of unauthorised expenditure from her mother's account, which had become completely depleted. They also were able to demonstrate that the monies were transferred into our client's personal account and then used to make personal transactions, including the purchase of a high value car and expensive holidays.

Notwithstanding the evidence, we were able to persuade the Fiscal that they couldn't proceed further against our client, agreeing to discontinue the court proceedings against her.

An accountant employed by a reputable firm of solicitors made contact with us when the police advised him they wanted to speak to him about making unauthorised personal withdrawals from the firm account into his own personal account of over £250,000 within a period of 2 years. The matter was prosecuted in the sheriff court but due to our analysis of the financial accounting we were able to persuade the prosecutor to significantly reduce the sum alleged to £20,000.

This client who was a successful business man with no previous convictions, contacted us because he was charged with stalking his ex partner by following her and attending at her parent's house and sending volumes of emails and other forms of communication to her which she claimed was unwanted, expressly threatening in nature, and placed her in a state of fear and alarm.

Other relatives gave evidence during the trial that they were terrified of him and his incessant behaviour to the extent that they required to telephone the police. Our client was arrested and charged with the offences of stalking.

During the trial we cross examined the witnesses and made certain legal submissions to the court that the evidence created a reasonable doubt and that in any event even if it did not ( referred to as an esto argument) our client was entitled to rely on the statutory defence set out in the Act where the behaviour was reasonable in the circumstances.

The sheriff agreed with both arguments and found our client not guilty.

This client was interviewed by Customs and Excise Investigators in relation to an alleged fraud of VAT in the millions of pounds, whereby goods were purchased from abroad through a Ltd company registered for VAT which sold goods on without the VAT The VAT payment remained within the company of which our client was a director, for a short period before it was siphoned off.

Our client contacted us as soon as the C&E department arranged an interview with her.

We gave our client advice and attended the interview with her. We were then able to enter into discussions with the Procurator Fiscal to persuade him to drop the proceedings against our client.
This case illustrates that it is vitally important to seek the appropriate advice at the earliest opportunity to avert what otherwise might amount to a lengthy and expensive prosecution in the criminal courts.

These offences are more prevalent than ever due to the multitude of different media platforms available. The Act makes it an offence to use a communication network to send messages which are grossly offensive in nature, or indecent, obscene or menacing in character.

It is also an offence to persistently makes use of a network to deliberately annoy the recipient or cause them inconvenience or needless anxiety, or send for these purposes, messages which they know to be false.

Many people are caught out by sending messages in the heat of the moment resulting in a police investigation. This can be done conventionally by email or by platforms such a Twitter and Facebook.

We acted for a client who was charged under thIs Act after the police arrested him for sending what they regarded was grossly offensive and menacing email messages to an ex-wife, who became hysterical and fearful of him because of the content.

At the conclusion of the trial we analysed the content and context of the messages and although they could have been construed as menacing, the sheriff accepted our submissions that, in the context of the audit trail and our client's reason for sending the emails, there was a reasonable doubt as to whether they met the objective test. Our client was found not guilty.

A client consulted us in relation to an investigation into illegal share dealing for clients. He had been accused of trading under a false profile on various trade platforms for which he had opened trading accounts. It was alleged that he was also receiving significant sums of money internationally from individuals who had trusted him to trade on their behalf with sums of money coming from illegitimate sources. He contacted us when the police authorities obtained warrants to arrest his bank accounts as a result of one client reporting him.

He was subsequently interviewed by the police in relation to which he was given clear legal advice. As the investigation continued, he was also suspected of trading in financial services without proper regulation or registration with the Financial Conduct Authority.

Over the course of the investigation we were able to steer him through the myriad of problems, including discussions with the Crown Office Financial Recovery Department, to eventually avoid a prosecution

Domestic assaults represent a disproportionately high number of cases regularly prosecuted in the sheriff courts throughout Scotland, to the extent that some sheriff courts run dedicated domestic abuse courts.

The prosecution service and the court both take these cases seriously.

The starting point for proving such a case comes from the accused's spouse or partner including estranged spouses or partners. The court then looks to see if there exists any other evidence to support that person's account. Usually physical evidence would assist such as fresh injury marks consistent with an assault, even injuries on the accused, signs of a disturbance within the house, and transfer of blood.

A 999 call made at the time of the offence naming the accused can be good evidence for the prosecution.

Very often the accused is found to be the only other occupant in the house when the police arrive and this can assist the prosecution. Any replies or comments made by the accused by way of explanation of what has happened, even if the comment appears more helpful to the accused. It is important that a skilled court practitioner is able to effectively challenge evidence that appears to be incriminatory.

MULTIPLE DOMESTIC ABUSE CHARGES

We recently acted for a client who was charged with an 'omnibus' charge containing numerous serious domestic assault charges alleged to have been committed over a period of one year. It was a case where, if convicted our client would have likely faced a term of imprisonment. The allegations involved over twenty offences of assault.The prosecution were relying on text messages from the accused to corroborate the complainer's evidence, as they amounted to admissions in various ways.

OUTCOME - ABSOLUTE DISCHARGE After examining all the evidence we discovered a technicality relating to the admissibility of the text messages from the accused, which severely weakened the Crown case. On the day of the trial we persuaded the prosecutor to drop all but one minor charge of pushing. After addressing the sheriff in mitigation, our client received an absolute discharge from the court, thus avoiding a criminal record and any penalty. This is a very rare disposal and is reserved for truly exceptional cases. We were able to persuade the sheriff that this case fell within that category.

OMNIBUS CHARGE An omnibus charge is one where it is alleged that there has been a course of conduct of many crimes of violence over a protracted period of time. These offences can be prosecuted as assaults in the sheriff court or as serious sexual assaults including rape in the High Court. They are often reported to the police once a relationship has terminated. It is not unusual for the complainer to claim that they cannot remember the exact dates and details of every offence they wish to report, and so the Crown prosecute the offences as one charge involving all of the offences by alleging on various occasions between (specifying two dates) the accused assaulted or raped the complainer by punching kicking, grabbing, strangling, dragging and then penetrating etc.

It makes it difficult for an accused to defend such domestic abuse charges, for various reasons. It is vitally important that an accused facing this type of charge, consults a solicitor or solicitor advocate at the earliest opportunity, in order to secure any evidence that can counter the allegations of assault, including sexual assaults and rape.

Additionally there are an number of evidential constraints placed on the crown, and it is imperative that a solicitor\advocate defending such a charge has expertise in how to defeat allegations of such offences, in the best interest of their client.