Jonathan Fisher QC considers the lessons for HMRC from the Sundico A/S litigation in which the department pursued a conspiracy action in the civil courts as an alternative to bringing criminal proceedings.
Instead of always bringing criminal prosecutions on occasions HMRC has sought to disrupt carousel frauds by pursuing conspiracy actions in the civil courts. One advantage of the civil route is that it is easier for HMRC to recover the proceeds of fraud than by prosecution in the criminal courts. However the relaxed requirements in the civil courts are not to be taken for granted as HMRC recently discovered to its cost in the Sunico A/S litigation.
The case involved an alleged conspiracy by multiple defendants to deprive HMRC of millions of pounds of VAT. HMRC alleged that one of the...
