 Locations :Bridewell Court14 New Bridge Street, London, Greater, London, United Kingdom  EC4V 6AG Tel (020) Fax (020) DX 447 London Chancery Lane   Website :  Senior Partner: Giles Bark-Jones  Partners: 1  Assistants: 29  Other fee-earners: 19

 THE FIRM Bark & Co is one of the UK’s leading fraud and business crime firms. The firm’s highly-skilled lawyers are committed to providing expert advice at every stage of proceedings. The firm’s principal aims are to avoid expensive litigation whenever possible and to fight tenaciously to protect its clients’ interests. Established in 1996 by Giles Bark-Jones, Bark & Co has developed into one of the Country’s most progressive and successful fraud firms. A founder member of the Specialist Fraud Panel, the firm specialises in commercial and criminal fraud as well as serious crime, business and tax regulation, tax investigations and corporate obligations associated with health and safety enforcement. The firm acts for private individuals as well as national and international companies. It has also established itself as a leader in the field of cash and asset recovery in both criminal and civil courts. Bark & Co prides itself on the individual expertise of its lawyers, the collective strength of its specialist teams and their skill in tailoring advice to match each client’s individual circumstances. Bark & Co’s rigorous commitment to quality of advice and personalised service has lead to significant work through referrals by both clients and other leading law firms.

 PRINCIPAL AREAS OF WORK Bark & Co handles a wide range of high-profile white-collar crime and fraud cases, including prosecutions and investigations brought by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), HM Revenue & Customs, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), the Financial Services Authority (FSA), the Special Compliance Office of the Inland Revenue, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Trading Standards and other prosecuting bodies.  Corporate & Commercial Fraud: Bark & Co became a member of the Serious Fraud Panel at its inception and is a member of the Very High Costs Cases panel (VHCC) qualified to deal with the most complex of criminal matters.Acknowledged as one of the leaders in the field of corporate and commercial fraud, the firm has defended against many of the major prosecutions brought by the SFO and other government agencies. It has acknowledged experts in VAT and duties tribunal work, tax regulation, defence of duty evasion, moneylaundering and carousel fraud, as well as mortgage fraud, investment fraud, corruption, pension fund fraud, telecoms fraud, theft, fraudulent trading by company directors and Internet fraud. Dedicated teams also deal with confiscation and post- and pre-charge restraint proceedings.

 Recent important cases include instructions in a high profile and politically sensitive FSA prosecution of directors (iSoft) in relation to the new NHS IT system and the defence of the Directors of a Carbon Trading company in an £85m fraud. Other cases include the defence of two Directors of a specialist division of Vantis PLC in a highly publicised case of alleged tax relief fraud. Bark & Co also represents a Managing Director of a prominent international bank involved in alleged insider trading; this is part of an unprecedented and high profile crackdown on fraud by the FSA and SOCA; Bark & Co are defending in another FSA prosecution of an alleged 11-handed insider dealing fraud involving two prominent investment banks and also defended in R v Law, Roberts & Harvey, another high profile SFO prosecution concerning fraudulent trading at a subsidiary of Alfred McAlpine PLC.

 Criminal: Bark & Co continues to act in high-profile criminal trials, including cases of murder, money laundering, drugs importations, armed robbery and people-smuggling. The firm focuses on high-end work, often involving crime across international boundaries and jurisdictions. The firm's wide ranging portfolio of cases includes the ongoing high-profile case of a private investigator murdered over 22 years ago in a London pub car park. A total of five separate investigations have been launched, involving tens of thousands of hours of police work and utilising long-term intrusive undercover surveillance. Bark & Co also advise private individuals and national and international companies facing investigation or criminal proceedings as a result of beaches of the Health and Safety Act, taking cases from pre-charge interviews through to trial.