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In light of the government announcing Part 2 of the Independent Review into Fraud
- Apr 24, 2025
- Latest News
Comment from Lisa McKinnon-Lower, criminal litigation partner at Spencer West LLP.
'The UK government’s Independent Review of Disclosure and Fraud Offences, led by Jonathan Fisher KC, marks a pivotal moment for the legal sector as it grapples with the complexities of digital-era crime. With fraud now accounting for over 40% of offences in England and Wales, the review addresses the urgent need to modernize legal processes to handle vast volumes of digital evidence effectively.
It seems a key recommendation of the review is the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline the disclosure process. Currently, the manual review of digital materials is resource-intensive, with the Serious Fraud Office allocating 25% of its 2023 budget to disclosure obligations. By employing AI, the legal system aims to expedite evidence analysis, reduce backlogs, and allocate resources more efficiently.
However, the adoption of AI introduces challenges. Concerns about procedural fairness, potential biases in AI algorithms, and the need for transparency are paramount. It is of course important that AI-assisted processes must still include human oversight to ensure compliance with disclosure obligations and protect defendants’ rights. Assuming the right balance is struck, the use of AI has great potential for all parties involved in criminal investigations and proceedings.
It is perhaps no coincidence that this review also coincides with the introduction of the new failure to prevent fraud offence, and highlights how important it is for corporates to give serious thought to the policies and procedures they should have in place to be compliant.'
About Lisa McKinnon-Lower
Lisa has joined Spencer West as a white-collar crime specialist. Having originally qualified as a barrister in 2010, Lisa has over 15 years of experience acting for individuals and corporate clients in a broad range of financial offences and related matters.
Lisa has particular expertise in bribery and corruption, money laundering, fraud, tax evasion and market abuse matters and has acted for clients in some of the most high-profile cases brought by the SFO, FCA, CPS and other UK and international prosecution authorities. Many of those cases involved complex cross boarder issues such as requests made pursuant to mutual legal assistance treaties, double jeopardy, human rights, and extradition. Lisa has regularly advised in some of the most high profile and complicated sanctions matters.
In addition, Lisa has considerable experience acting for clients in civil fraud and director misfeasance cases, civil tax matters brought by HMRC, as well as personal and company insolvency matters.