Overview
Cairns Nelson KC has specialised in financial crime for many years. He was appointed Standing Counsel to HMRC 2006-2010 and prosecuted major tax fraud and arms control/sanctions cases. Since taking silk in 2010 he has defended and prosecuted in the full range of major complex fraud and money laundering cases and ranked in the Legal 500 Band 1 for Financial crime.
He has maintained a practice defending and prosecuting high profile, often organised crime or gang related murder cases.
He is also highly experienced in the fields of regulatory discipline, powers of search and seizure, confiscation /asset recovery and consumer protection legislation in the criminal and civil context.
Financial, Corporate Crime and Financial Regulation
Mr Nelson KC has advised and appeared in all forms of cases involving allegations of tax fraud; SIPP pension fraud and RAS (relief at source) fraud, sideways tax relief fraud (environmental and film); VAT cases (MTIC and false return cases); duty fraud including outward and inward duty diversion cases; income tax and other direct tax fraud including advising on COP8 and 9 settlements with the Revenue. He has also defended in a major and lengthy Care Home fraud as well as defending in boiler room frauds and the full range of advanced fee and Ponzi frauds .
Nr Nelson KC has been advising numerous clients re ‘Hansard’ settlements with Revenue.
He prosecutes for Trading Standards in publishing fraud and energy fraud scams. He recently prosecuted a multi handed election fraud on the Isle of Man.
He advises Jersey advocates on money laundering cases often involving in allegations of laundering proceeds of alleged UK tax evasion.
He has appeared in many cases involving allegations of breaches of Control Orders and Export prohibitions/sanctions orders relating to military grade equipment.
Search and Seizure:
He advises on challenging search warrants and production orders and pursuing return of property orders under the provisions of section 59 CJPA 2001.
Consumer Protection:
He appeared for the OFT (as it then was) in High Court proceedings to stop the sale of black market and counterfeit tickets.
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Advising and representing a Premier League Football club.
Early stages of a tax investigation including the successful challenge to the retention of materials seized by the Revenue under a warrant.
Regulatory Crime
Prosecuting major and multi-handed Trading Standards Fraud trials for Local Authorities.
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R-v-R and others 2019
Allegation of National fraud on 100’s of small businesses in relation to energy bills.
Crime
Cairns has defended in dozens of murder cases often involving allegations of OCG connections. Some recent examples of major multi handed murder cases involving complex mobile phone cell site and CCTV evidence are set out below:
Recently he defended in the Manchester A Team case involving the shooting of rival gang members including a young child see https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-47911192
He defended in the Moss Side/ Ardwick gangs revenge killings https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/gang-handed-life-sentences-murder-15112060
He defended a 17 year-old in a gang related murder case involving a cut throat defence. https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/news/teens-jailed-for-brutal-murder-184614/
He appeared for one of the defendants in an allegation of a drive by execution murder in the Wythenshawe area . https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/local-news/stuart-horner-jailed-for-shooting-dead-688316
Inquests & Public Inquiries
Cairns has had extensive experience of assisting with Inquiry work and reviews concerning the conduct and practices of HMRC during his period as Standing Counsel for the AG (Revenue and Customs).
For instance he spent 18 months assisting the Butterfield Review conducted by Butterfield J which was an inquiry into the London City Bond fiasco and how it was that Judges had been misled on PII applications and why informants and CHIS and not been properly handled or registered.
Thereafter he spent 4 years conducting an inquiry and investigation on behalf of the AG into the safety of convictions that were linked to the London City Bond issues. This involved reviewing vast amounts of material including CHIS records and transcripts of trials to identify where Courts and Judges and been misled or where there had been failures in disclosure and to bring such issues to the attention of defence solicitors and the CACD.
For approximately 18 months, he advised the Attorney General and HMRC on the conduct of past investigations into Bureau de Change and money laundering. This involved an examination of the handling, registration and record keeping relating to CHIS and HUMINT sources at these Bureau and the subsequent disclosure of the status of these individuals during prosecutions.
Subsequently he was instructed by HMRC to advise on the scope of and content of any inquiry into the historic interception of mail by the HMRC that had been done without lawful authority because of an unintended error of wording in the statutory language. He advised on the scope of the enquiry in past cases and the need to ensure disclosure in all current and future cases.
Over the years he has represented parties at Inquests including bereaved families and also drivers involved in fatal RTAs.
Testimonials
Memberships
Standing Counsel HMRC 2006-2010
SFO A list panel 2005-2010
Recorder 2006
Bencher Gray’s Inn 2017
Criminal Bar Association
Fraud Lawyers Association
