Tom Rainsbury
UK Bar Guide 2025
Band 2 : POCA Work & Asset Forfeiture
Band 2
About
Provided by Tom Rainsbury
Practice Areas
Civil fraud; banking and finance; crypto-assets; financial services; POCA & asset forfeiture; sanctions; administrative and public law; financial crime
Career
University College London, LLB (First Class) University of Cambridge, Commercial LLM
Tom’s has a busy advisory and litigation practice in the above areas.
He has particular expertise in claims involving allegations of fraud, including APP fraud, advance fee fraud, mortgage fraud, Ponzi schemes and bribery and corruption. He has a thriving judicial review practice, particularly in cases at the intersection between public and commercial law and claims against the FOS, FCA and FSCS. He is developing a discrete practice in sanctions work.
He is appointed to the Attorney General’s B Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown and the Serious Fraud Office’s B Panel for Proceeds of Crime and International Assistance work.
Recent cases have included: Wang v Tianjin Lantian Gerui Electronic Technology Co Ltd [2024] EWHC 2059 (Ch) (application for provisional liquidators in respect of 61,000 Bitcoin); R (Assurant General Insurance) v FOS [2024] 1 All ER (Comm) 640 (correct approach in judicial review challenges to the FOS’s jurisdiction); R (Marandi) v Westminster MC [2023] EWHC 587 (Admin) (anonymity orders in respect of non-parties); and NCA v Hajiyeva [2020] 2 All ER (Comm) (first unexplained wealth order).
Professional Memberships
ALBA, FSLA, LCLCBA, YFLA
Publications
Administrative Court Digest, Editor Mitchell, Taylor and Talbot on Confiscation and the Proceeds of Crime, Contributor
Chambers Review
UK Bar
Tom Rainsbury offers strong expertise in POCA matters including those relating to civil recovery, freezing orders and account forfeiture. He also worked on the first cases involving Unexplained Wealth Orders. Rainsbury is sought after by enforcement agencies and is also a member of the Attorney General's B Panel of Counsel to the Crown and the SFO's Proceeds of Crime B Panel.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
"Tom Rainsbury is a stellar junior. He excels in complex, cross-border, politically charged cases. Extraordinary in his written work and very persuasive as an advocate."
"Tom is outstanding. He is hard-working and has a first-rate understanding of civil procedure rules and considerable experience within this area of the law, which is invaluable."
"Tom has a very good brain for NCA work and is very good on the public law link with POCA work."
"Tom Rainsbury is a stellar junior. He excels in complex, cross-border, politically charged cases. Extraordinary in his written work and very persuasive as an advocate."
"Tom is outstanding. He is hard-working and has a first-rate understanding of civil procedure rules and considerable experience within this area of the law, which is invaluable."
"Tom has a very good brain for NCA work and is very good on the public law link with POCA work."
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