Civil Fraud & Asset Recovery

Our civil fraud expertise forms an integral part of Edwin Coe’s commercial dispute practice, with key members of the team undertaking significant work in this area.
Almost always involving multiple jurisdictions, our team has deep experience in designing and deploying bespoke and fast-moving litigation strategies to pursue fraudsters or protect assets from wrongful enforcement. Our team has conducted fraud related litigation and asset recovery campaigns worth US $bns across the common law and civil law world, including the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, Russia and multiple US states.

Our lawyers also work with the firm’s clients to address regulatory concerns, investigations, and risk mitigation. They are supported by our Corporate, Intellectual Property and other relevant teams.

What we do best:
  • Interim Injunctions

    Obtaining and enforcing freezing injunctions, both domestically and internationally, in support of domestic or foreign proceedings.

  • Jurisdiction Challenges

    Advising on jurisdictional issues, whether asserting or challenging jurisdiction, frequently arising in complex fraud and cross-border litigation.

  • Investigation and Evidence Gathering

    Conducting and resisting investigations to identify fraud participants, locate assets, and develop claims and enforcement strategies.

  • Crypto & Digital Assets

    Litigating cryptocurrency and digital asset fraud, including tracing stolen tokens, recovering fraudulent investments, and securing injunctive relief.

  • Financial Services

    Leading financial services fraud litigation, particularly in consumer mis-selling, regulatory breaches, and negligent investment advice.

  • Enforcement

    Enforcing domestic judgments overseas and international judgments and arbitration awards within the UK and other jurisdictions.

Awards
Contact our team
Examples of our work include:
Acting successfully for holiday home buyers who had purchased in a development which, unbeknownst to them, was a front for the Calabrian mafia and the Provisional IRA and whose deposits were consequently lost. Edwin Coe ultimately made an aggregate multi-million pound recovery.
Acting in a £1.3bn Commercial Court claim against HSBC arising from their investments in film finance partnerships.
Acted in the $6bn multi-jurisdictional fraud case – JSC BTA Ban Mukhtar Ablyazov and a tri-jurisdictional claim in which arrests have been made in various jurisdictions on a suspected money laundering operation between the IRA and the Italian Mafia.
Acting work in sub-Saharan Africa, advising the World Bank and donor governments among others. This is another specialty that has inevitably involved the firm in some large and complex frauds.
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Very good lawyers who punch above their weight.
- The Legal 500 UK 2026
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As civil fraud is constantly evolving, especially in financial transactions, the team strives to stay ahead of the curve by learning from the most recent cases in various jurisdiction.
- The Legal 500 UK 2026
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Caring, professional, and creative.
- The Legal 500 UK 2024
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David Greene and Ali Zaidi are the people I most often engage with and they are both excellent lawyers.
- The Legal 500 UK 2021
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David Greene’s experience and judgment is virtually unparalleled in the market.
- The Legal 500 UK 2021
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Edwin Coe have one of the strongest civil fraud practices in the City, and do a lot of work for Russian and Middle-Eastern clients, with the result that they are at the heart of the Civil Fraud landscape.
- The Legal 500 UK 2022
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Edwin Coe’s litigation team is both practical and creative, well-versed in the techniques necessary to win cases, they are abrilliant group of highly skilled lawyers. Especially talented in collective, group, mass and class actions, and with a thorough understanding of litigation finance, Edwin Coe is a leading voice in investor disputes, shareholder actions, competition matters, and consumer rights cases. They are deeply committed to their clients’ causes and to their clients’ best interests.
- The Legal 500 UK 2024
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Great lawyers who communicate with clients about all aspects of cases. Deep bench and dedicated to results.
- The Legal 500 UK 2025
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I have had a pleasure of working with David Greene (Senior Partner) and Fred Sheppard (Senior Associate). I was particularly impressed by their grasp of very complex issues involving international securities and their ability to deal with multijurisdictional problems that involved both continental and common law issues. Especially impressive was Mr. Greene’s in-depth analysis of litigation perspectives and Mr. Sheppard’s extraordinary research into the arcane issues of complex securities and related contractual and tort claims.
- The Legal 500 UK 2022
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The team at Edwin Coe is very litigation focused. Indeed, they are consummate litigators. As a result, they are one of the best firms, in my experience, at balancing cost effectiveness with successful litigation.
- The Legal 500 UK 2021
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The class action team has great experience in high-value fraud claims.
- The Legal 500 UK 2025
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Tenacious and passionate about their cases - and great fun to work with. Broad competence, excellent analysis, short turnover times, and a willingness to go the extra mile for clients.
- The Legal 500 UK 2025
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Takes the time to understand industry sectors and ensure that clients are suitably informed throughout the process.
- The Legal 500 UK 2025
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Never phased by the most serious allegations of fraud and corruption, the team at Edwin Coe keep a level head and adopt strategies which ensure their clients obtain the best representation possible.
- The Legal 500 UK 2022
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Our Team
David Greene
Ali Zaidi
Zahira Hussain
Thomas Malato-Johnson
barrister – partner
Alexander Shirtcliff
Fred Sheppard
Sam Harris
Valerie Sweeting
Charlotte Kessler
Aidan Fung
Marianna Stephenson