The Legal 500

Within Customs & Excise, Peters & Peters Solicitors LLP is a first tier firm,

Peters & Peters is acknowledged as expert in tax investigations and regularly advises corporate clients and high-net-worth individuals who have become the subject of HMRC enquiries. With a focus on fraud and criminal matters, the practice is currently advising numerous clients as a result of HMRC’s success in gaining access to information about offshore accounts held by UK taxpayers. Monty Raphael and Sarah Gabriel are both recommended.

Within EU and competition ,

While this section focuses on corporate representation, for cartel criminal actions against executives Peters & Peters (notably partners Michael O’Kane and Jo Rickards) is the ‘market-leading’ firm.

Within Financial services, tier 4

Peters & Peters is recommended for market abuse cases. The team acted for an individual in an insider dealing investigation being conducted in Paris by the AMF. Monty Raphael and Jo Rickards are well regarded.

Within VAT and indirect tax, tier 4

Peters & Peters’ practice focuses on contentious matters and investigations by HMRC. It acted in an appeal for a number of UK telecoms corporations concerning the HMRC’s refusal to repay more than £30m of VAT arising from the export of mobile phones. Sarah Gabriel and Monty Raphael are praised by clients.

Within Fraud - commercial and regulatory investigations, Peters & Peters Solicitors LLP is a first tier firm,

Peters & Peters has a longstanding reputation as a leading firm in the area. The ‘flamboyant and outgoing’ Keith Oliver is ‘very knowledgeable’ and ‘strategically very sound’, and has ‘a big-picture mentality’, and Jonathan Tickner is a ‘very competent and impressive lawyer’. The practice successfully represented the London Strategic Health Authority on behalf of the NHS at trial in April 2008, recovering millions of pounds from pharmaceutical companies.

Within Fraud - crime , Peters & Peters Solicitors LLP is a first tier firm,

Peters & Peters’ Anand Doobay acted for six former executives of Yukos in resisting extradition requests by the Russian Federation. Jo Rickards is ‘a very able’ and ‘very competent’ lawyer.

Within Overview,

Since the reduction of legal aid, most criminal practices compete for a limited number of VHCC (Very High Cost Cases). Some less specialised firms remain committed to taking on all legal aid cases, whereas others such as Peters & Peters have dropped legal aid altogether except for existing clients. Crime practices are given credit in the rankings if they have a high rate of securing acquittals on controversial or serious crimes, or if they have been chosen to defend in high-profile criminal cases.

Within Overview,

In response, City firms such as Simmons & Simmons are developing in-house criminal law capabilities. Conversely, traditional crime firms such as Peters & Peters are moving into corporate and civil law. Nonetheless, the market insists that traditional criminal fraud specialists are favoured for individuals seeking defence, particularly since individuals who have had assets frozen will have to seek legal aid to pay for legal services. The Fraud: commercial and regulatory investigations section covers firms experienced in civil fraud prosecutions and those that advise on compliance issues with regulators such as the FSA and the Securities Exchange Commission in the US.

Within Commercial litigation, tier 7

While Peters & Peters is rightly regarded as one of the leading firms for civil fraud and white-collar crime, its wider commercial disputes practice is also highly recommended. A recent highlight was advising the Department of Health in over £100m-worth of price and supply fixing claims against several pharmaceutical companies. Senior partner Keith Oliver heads the first-class team.