Situation
Received a regulator’s or agency’s notice?
A notice, summons or inspection from a regulator or investigating agency usually comes with a short deadline and serious consequences for the company and its officers. Working with your lawyers, we establish what actually happened, reconstruct the transactions in question and help you prepare a response that is accurate, complete and supported by documents.
Warning signs
Signs you need an independent investigation
- A show-cause notice, summons or request for information with a fixed deadline
- An inspection or inquiry into the company’s books and records
- Questions about specific transactions, related parties or fund flows
- Directors or key managers asked to appear or give statements
Act quickly, act carefully
What to do in the first 48 hours
- Step 01
Take legal advice
Involve counsel at once; the response and any investigation should run under their direction.
- Step 02
Preserve every record
Suspend routine deletion of emails, files and devices. Destroying records after a notice can be an offence.
- Step 03
Map the questions
List exactly what the notice asks, the period it covers and the deadline.
Our approach
How we investigate
- 01
Fact-finding under privilege
Establish what happened before anything is said to the regulator.
- 02
Transaction reconstruction
Trace the payments, entities and approvals the notice refers to.
- 03
Document and data review
Collect and review the emails, ledgers and records that support or contradict each point.
- 04
Response support
Help counsel prepare a clear, evidenced response and the schedules that go with it.
What you receive
- Fact-finding report for counsel
- Transaction and fund-flow analysis
- Supporting schedules for the response
Frequently asked questions
Should we investigate before replying to a regulator’s notice?
In most cases, yes. A reply that later turns out to be incomplete or wrong can make matters worse. A quick, privileged fact-finding exercise, run with your lawyers, tells you what the records show before you commit to a position. Ask for more time if the deadline does not allow this.
What should we do with documents once a notice arrives?
Preserve them. Suspend routine deletion of emails and files, secure the devices of people involved, and keep a record of what was preserved and when. Destroying or altering records after a notice can lead to separate proceedings.
Proof
Relevant case files
Client names and identifying details are withheld to protect confidentiality. Specific references and client experiences can be shared on request, with the client’s consent.
Other situations
Facing something different?
- Received a whistleblower complaint?Investigate allegations independently, protect the whistleblower and give your board a defensible answer.
- Suspect fraud, embezzlement or financial misconduct?Establish what happened, who was involved and how much was lost, with evidence that stands up.
- Suspect vendor kickbacks or procurement fraud?Find collusion, kickbacks, inflated invoices and fictitious vendors in your purchasing and supply chain.
- Vetting a partner, vendor or acquisition target?Know who you are dealing with before you sign, invest or onboard: promoters, related parties and reputation.
- Need to trace hidden or diverted assets?Find assets that have been concealed, moved or held through others, and support their recovery.
- Facing a dispute that needs forensic evidence?Quantify losses, analyse the evidence and give expert opinion that stands up in court or arbitration.