Russell-Cooke is delighted to welcome Frances Murray, who joins as partner in the fraud and criminal litigation team.
Frances brings with her a wealth of experience in financial crime and criminal defence, having spent over a decade at a boutique City firm specialising in financial crime.
She qualified as a barrister and was called to the Bar in 2008 and cross qualified as a solicitor in 2011.
She represents both corporate and high/ultra-high net worth clients in a wide range of contentious and non-contentious matters, and has been involved in numerous high-profile and first-of-their-kind financial crime and regulatory cases.
Frances regularly acts for clients in cases investigated and prosecuted by the Serious Fraud Office, Financial Conduct Authority, HM Revenue and Customs, National Crime Agency, Crown Prosecution Service and other authorities, including cross-jurisdictional matters, as well as those involving regulatory powers such as unexplained wealth orders (UWOs) and account freezing orders (AFOs).
Frances is based in the firm's Bedford Row office.
Jae Cawardine, partner and head of the fraud and criminal litigation team says:
“Frances is a formidable lawyer and defence practitioner with an outstanding track record of providing the highest standard of advocacy and advice for clients. Her insight into financial crime, and her work in highly influential cases before the UK courts in recent years, makes her an outstanding addition to our criminal litigation offering, and a real asset to the firm. We’re thrilled to have her on board.”
Frances says:
“The criminal litigation offering at Russell-Cooke is both well established and highly reputable, and I am excited to be collaborating with my new colleagues and drawing on their wider expertise to secure the best possible results for clients, who continue to occupy a rapidly shifting regulatory environment and must contend with a host of new legal powers being deployed in the course of investigations and prosecution. Providing a diligent and determined defence is not only in the best interests of the defendants, but also the wider course of justice, and it’s great to be joining a team which grasps the full extent of that responsibility.”