Christopher Houssemayne du Boulay

Practice Areas

Christopher Houssemayne du Boulay is a barrister and financial crime specialist who represents HNW businesspeople caught up the most serious and complex fraud and regulatory matters.

Christopher has a strong track record of success defending senior directors under investigation by the SFO, FCA and FRC. These clients often require legal representation when the companies they work for are under investigation.

He also represents individuals and corporates in connection with complex money laundering investigations.

Christopher has developed particularly strong expertise defending HNW individuals accused of complex allegations of accounting fraud, both in criminal and regulatory matters. He is particularly interested in the way in which ordinary business practices are often later rewoven by a prosecutor as dishonest criminal behaviour. Chris has developed considerable expertise in unpicking a prosecution case, and helping his clients put supposedly incriminating evidence in its proper context.

He was key part of the team which achieved the acquittal of the former Managing Director of G4S UK in SFO fraud proceedings. During this case Christopher spearheaded the forensic investigation work which uncovered a serious flaw in the SFO’s Autonomy Introspect disclosure review system. His highlighting of this problem led the SFO to conduct an ongoing wholesale review of all cases in which it used this system. The firm was shortlisted as Boutique or Regional Investigations Practice of the Year (worldwide) by GIR for its work “raising vital problems with SFO disclosure software that could affect many other past and present cases”.

Christopher is currently leading the firm’s work on behalf of a defendant in an ongoing SFO prosecution for conspiracy to make corrupt payments to public officials in Sierra Leone on behalf of London Mining PLC. This is a complex multi-jurisdictional investigation by the SFO into bribery, corruption and money laundering, in which foreign evidence requests were made to at least nine jurisdictions.

Christopher has worked on many of Hickman & Rose’s most significant recent financial crime matters. He had a significant role in achieving the acquittal of the former Managing Director of Tesco UK on charges of fraud and false accounting brought by the SFO. He also played an important part in the team advising individuals in connection with the SFO’s investigations into ENRC, Rolls Royce, Airbus, Greenenergy, BAT, the Price Stone Group, and Libor and Euribor manipulation.

He also has experience of cases that involve parallel investigations in the UK and overseas, including the US, Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia and often works closely alongside lawyers based in other jurisdictions.

Christopher is experienced in matters before professional regulators such as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and regularly provides legal advice to clients facing parallel criminal and regulatory investigations.

Christopher also advises HNW individuals (as well as corporates) on the law governing the proceeds of crime, money laundering and the seizure and confiscation of assets, especially as it relates to complex financial investigations. He has represented a number of individuals and corporates in connection with freezing and forfeiture proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

Career

Called to the Bar in 2012, Christopher completed his pupillage at leading criminal chambers, QEB Hollis Whiteman. During his pupillage Chris was seconded to HMRC where he assisted with trial preparation in relation to two Missing Trader Intra-Community (MTIC) VAT fraud cases in the tax tribunal. Prior to pupillage Christopher worked on the successful defence of singer and X-factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos against drug supply allegations following an undercover sting by Sun journalist Mazher Mahmood (the ‘Fake Sheikh’). The trial was stayed as an abuse of process and Mazher Mahmood was subsequently prosecuted and convicted for attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Christopher joined Hickman & Rose in 2016 and was promoted to partner in 2020.

Professional Memberships

Christopher is a former Chair of the Young Fraud Lawyers Association.

He sits on the City of London Law Society AI Committee.