KARL FOSTER
PARTNER - CORPORATE
PRACTICE AREA
EDUCATION AND BIOGRAPHY
Karl is an experienced, entrepreneurial lawyer specialising in Commercial, Corporate, Technology, Fintech and Financial Services. He has wide experience as a General Counsel with a highly commercial outlook and extensive Regulatory and Compliance experience.
- Corporate – has led on a range of corporate matters incl. funding rounds, divestments, MBOs and M&A. Assists start and scale ups become investment ready.
- Commercial Contracts – experienced across a variety of heavyweight commercial agreements from strategic procurement to distribution, collaboration and creation and monetisation of IP.
- Fintech – fintech general counsel. Experience across the fintech ecosystem including digitisation, payments, blockchain, crowdfunding,
- Tech/TMT specialising in IT/IP incl. licensing and disputes and telecommunications. Particular expertise in digital rights and distribution (Film, TV, Music, Games), UGC, e and m commerce and regulatory matters, Global Outsourcing incl. ‘cloud’ (PAAS, IAAS, SAAS).
- Regulatory/Compliance – substantial experience advising upon and implementing a variety of compliance and ethics programmes, including anti-bribery, anti money laundering. Significant expertise in data protection/privacy incl. development of global privacy programmes; compliance aspects associated with telecoms, FS (incl. FCA Rulebook) and advertising.
- Financial Services and Insurance – substantial international, product development, and distribution experience, including advising upon the FCA Handbook and perimeter issues.
W Legal Limited is not a partnership and the term “partner” applied to a person does not denote that such person is in partnership with W Legal Limited or with any other partner, consultant, director, officer, employee or agent of W Legal Limited. The term is used to describe a person’s seniority and experience.
Recent Case Experience
- Instructed in a successful and ground-breaking private prosecution on behalf of a private individual at a London Crown Court in respect of proceedings under Serious Crime Act alleging controlling and coercive behaviour arising from the failure of a husband to consent to a Get in Jewish divorce proceedings.
- Instructed to act in a private fraud prosecution at Wood Green Crown Court on behalf of developer clients involving the issuing of bogus safety certification at a large residential development. Securing the conviction of a defendant for charges under Fraud Act. The Defendant received a custodial sentence.
- Instructed in ongoing private prosecution proceedings on behalf of a private individual in respect of alleged fraudulent activity involving bogus invoicing in high value purchases of domain sites.
- Representing a Defendant proceedings at Newcastle Crown Court in respect of large scale conspiracy to defraud private medical insurance companies. Defendant acquitted of all charges.
- Instructed in Proceeds of Crime Act forfeiture proceedings in which money was said to be recoverable property arising from Hawala banking activity.
- Representing the principal defendant in large scale fraud in the horse racing world. Defendant cleared of all charges at Hereford Crown Court after successfully obtaining a stay of the proceedings as an abuse of the process of the court.
- Operation Zajic at Southwark Crown Court advising and representing a Defendant in ongoing proceedings in a major fraud and international money laundering case.
- Operation Cleo at Teesside Crown Court successfully representing a client in large trading standards prosecution, alleging fraud in respect of the operation of copycat government websites. Defendant acquitted of all charges.
- Operation Vanilla at The Central Criminal Court representing one of the principal defendants in a carbon credit fraud not guilty verdicts entered.
- Operation Valgus at Mold Crown Court largest mortgage fraud prosecuted in the UK involving 1000 properties successfully represented achieving not guilty verdicts for an accountant one of the principal defendants charged in the conspiracy.
- Advising and representing multi-national company in respect of the imposition of criminal sanctions by HMRC following alleged customs and import duty breaches. Successfully overturning the criminal sanction.
- Advising and representing a chief executive of a regional construction company in alleged contract fraud against a local authority. Prosecution successfully averted.
- Operation Memic at Manchester Crown Court successfully representing a client charged with conspiracy in a multi-million pound mortgage fraud not guilty verdicts on all counts.
- Advising and representing clients facing an investigation into allegations of fraud arising from the activities of a high profile national charity.
- Advising and representing a principal defendant in proceeds of crime proceedings at Liverpool Crown Court
- Operation Compost at Liverpool Crown Court HMRC prosecution of 12 Defendants in relation to offences of conspiracy to evade the duty on diesel fuel, the fraudulent evasion of VAT and money laundering. Defendant acquitted of all charges after a ten-week trial.
- Revenue Cheat prosecution by HM Revenue and Customs at St Albans Crown Court of an accountant charged in relation to fraudulent repayments of tax exceeding £1m The investigation involved looking into the financial affairs of upto 2000 clients and acting in the subsequent confiscation proceedings to achieve a favourable result for the client.
- ‘The Millennium Dome Fraud.’ at Southwark Crown Court. High profile conspiracy to defraud, contract procurement fraud and international money laundering at the Millennium Dome. Further allegations of public sector allegations of corruption, namely the offer to award a contract for money. Investigations in Florida, Spain, Latvia and Switzerland Defendant acquitted after a three month trial at Southwark Crown Court.
- Operation Blossom Global Software Piracy on a massive scale. First case prosecuted by the (then) National Hi Tech Crime Unit. Advising and assisting a Defendant in respect of foreign jurisdiction inquiries in various US jurisdictions and in Australia.
- Operation Granada PAYE/Gift Aid fraud on HMRC as well as allegation of theft of £1million + from a children’s charity designed to assist children with brain damage. The matter proceeded to a contested trial and confiscation proceedings at Manchester Crown Court. Prosecution sought a “Benefit” figure in excess of £1million. Successfully argued for a nil benefit in respect of the Defendant’s admitted role in respect of the PAYE fraud and restricted her benefit to a fraction of the figure sought by the Crown.
- Operation Troubadour representing one of six defendants at Stafford Crown Court (Including three large corporate defendants) charged with offences under Health and Safety and other sundry legislation following a double fatality on the railways. 8 week trial secured acquittal on the primary Imprisonable charge.
Contact David Willburn
Meet The Team
ELLIOT SHEAR
MANAGING DIRECTOR
LISA MCKINNON-LOWER
PARTNER
EGZONA MUSTAFA
OFFICE MANAGER
Articles by Adrian Wallace
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