Gareth Minty is a Partner in the Fraud Group and specialises in advising clients who have been the victim of crime and who are seeking redress, whether directly in the form of a private prosecution or as a result of criminal proceedings brought by the state authorities.
Gareth also advises corporate clients on wider criminal enforcement and deterrence strategies, as well as working in concert with the firm's Cyber Risk and Complex Investigations team and civil litigators to deliver comprehensive outcomes for clients.
Since joining Mishcon de Reya, Gareth has drawn on his experience as a senior lawyer in the Central Fraud Division of the Crown Prosecution Service to successfully conduct the then-largest private prosecution brought to date involving a complex €100m fraud, which resulted in a sentence of 8 years’ imprisonment.
Gareth’s private prosecution experience also extends to:
- acting on behalf of companies involved in the Creative Industries in relation to fraud against rights holders' intellectual property;
- internal accounting frauds involving substantial breaches of trust;
- proceedings for international blackmail in a corporate context;
- cases involving data theft, harassment and unlawful surveillance;
- investigations arising from sensitive domestic abuse allegations;
- matters involving criminal allegations arising out of insolvencies and offences against company directors; and
- perjury, perverting the course of justice and other offences against the proper administration of justice.
Gareth is also Chair of the Private Prosecutors' Association and is regularly recognised in the legal directories for his work on private prosecutions, including in Chambers & Partners, where he is ranked in Band 1, and in Legal 500, where is regarded as a Leading Individual.
Key Experience
- Allseas v Paul Sultana – acting for Allseas in private prosecution arising from a €100m investment fraud, after the state authorities declined to prosecute, which resulted in the defendant's conviction and a sentence of imprisonment.
- Intellectual Property Crime – acting for companies in the Creative Industries, prosecuting defendants in connection with fraudulent behaviour involving illicit streaming of film, television and other media.
- Acting for a corporate 'Investment Fund Manager' – private prosecution of a senior former employee accused of misappropriating millions of pounds from the company; the police declined to investigate, leading to a private prosecution that resulting in the defendant's conviction and significant sentence of imprisonment.
- Acting for a Trust Company – private prosecution brought against a former trustee in connection with allegations of fraud by abuse of position, in a case involving multiple jurisdictions and complex banking arrangements.
- Undertaking investigations in which pre-proceedings material has been obtained from third parties using Norwich Pharmacal Orders.
- Giving evidence to a Parliamentary Select Committee in relation to safeguards and the proper conduct of private prosecutions (Private prosecutions: safeguards (parliament.uk)).
- Representing clients who have been the subject of substantial cash seizures in accordance with the Proceeds of Crime Act, and likewise those involved in confiscation proceedings as Interested Parties (in accordance with s.10A of POCA).
- Defending an SFO prosecution for the alleged money laundering of the proceeds of 'boiler room' frauds.
- Acting for clients under investigation, across multiple jurisdictions, for offences relating to rate/market manipulation
Career History
Partner, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Legal Director, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Associate, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Senior Lawyer, Crown Prosecution Service, Organised Crime Division
Senior Lawyer, Crown Prosecution Service, Central Fraud Division
Senior Lawyer, Revenue & Customs Prosecutions Office
Brunel University, LLB (Honours)
Articles and Publications
Co-author: "An Inspector calls: do you need a lawyer?". Published in The Strategic View - Business Crime 2016, issue 1, September 2016