Crisis Management toolkit

We help businesses fulfil their regulatory obligations to train staff adequately, put in place and maintain appropriate governance structures, implement key policies, and horizon scan for new risks.

Governance structures and compliance processes are of vital importance in mitigating risk and maintaining a strong sustainability and ESG proposition. We help our clients navigate the "G" in ESG, which comprise complex and competing undertakings, requiring boards to keep track of regulatory change at a time when policy agendas are experiencing conflicting political and economic pressures, at the same time as meeting shareholder expectations of strong financial returns and the fundamental interests of stakeholders and wider society in the creation of a long-term sustainable business.

Our clients trust us to help them to navigate these complex and sometimes competing considerations with robust and practical advice which takes account of the specific needs of their business and the realities of the business environment in which they operate. Our corporate governance and compliance offering to our clients includes:

• Design of governance tools, policies and procedures.
• Assessment of ESG risks and opportunities.
• Corporate culture and purpose, and the pursuit of sustainability  goals.
• Reporting and disclosure obligations and messaging.
• Engaging with stakeholders and responding to activist or hostile shareholders/approaches.
• Directors' duties.
• Drafting sustainability and ESG provisions for commercial contracts.
• Delivering practical training on sustainability and ESG topics to boards, senior executives and legal teams.

Before any incident occurs, we work with our clients to assess their key areas of risk and develop plans so they are as prepared as they can be. We provide practical training e.g. dawn raid training, to reduce the chance of a key individual making a costly misstep early on in a crisis. Getting ahead of the game by engaging us as retained counsel means we can provide you with both preventative counselling, as well as be ready the moment an incident occurs.

Even if a plan has been put in place beforehand, events will move quickly and it is important to be responsive to the changing picture. We are on hand as trusted advisors to help clients identify and protect against the myriad legal and reputational issues that can emerge in the early phases of crisis. We advise on issues such as legal privilege, litigation risk and data privacy, preventing issues further down the line.

Internal (including workplace) investigations continue to be on the rise, owing to a greater focus on conduct, culture and governance, an increase in whistleblowing, and heightened interest from regulators.

We get involved when there has been a trigger event, for instance a data breach or where an employee has blown the whistle or made formal complaints of bullying or harassment.  We also conduct investigations when a client wants to take pre-emptive steps to manage a perceived potential risk: for example, where no formal complaint has been made but the organisation is aware of rumours.

We conduct internal investigations for existing clients and also new clients who want to involve an independent firm, for example where their existing legal advisors are conflicted.

Investigations typically involve complex and challenging situations, with associated high levels of risk for the client from a reputational perspective.  We will interview appropriate individuals, review relevant documents, assess and analyse these collated facts and reach conclusions, producing and presenting a report of our findings.  Our skill set enables us to conduct these investigations in a thorough manner and at the same time with sensitivity, practicality and business intelligence.

Where the nature of the investigation requires it, we bring in other lawyers within the firm to provide additional expertise (for example, from a corporate, regulatory or tax perspective).  We are also well used to project managing external providers where their input is necessary for part of the investigation, such as accountants, auditors or IT forensic specialists.

Our lawyers are market-leading experts in regulatory investigations, enforcement actions and disciplinary proceedings across a range of sectors. We know how to engage with regulators across the spectrum to achieve the best outcome for you. Our lawyers have a keen and nuanced understanding of the way regulators think as many have previous experience working for regulators and within regulated institutions. our experience dealing with regulators includes investigations by:

• Financial Conduct Authority
• Competition and Markets Authority
• European Commission
• Environment Agency
• European Securities and Markets Authority
• Health and Safety Executive
• His Majesty's Revenue and Customs
• Serious Fraud Office
• UK Visas and Immigration
• US Department of Justice
• Pensions Regulator

We regularly advise clients across a range of sectors, from financial services and technology providers to sporting bodies, on the regulatory implications of transactions, including in European Commission competition investigations on alleged anti-competitive practices and investigations and market studies by the Competition and Markets Authority. We also provide compliance advice across the full range of competition issues.

Several authorities have statutory powers to conduct unannounced visits to investigate potential wrongdoing, known as "dawn raids", including the Financial Conduct Authority, Serious Fraud Office, His Majesty's Revenue and Customs  ("HMRC") and the Competition and Markets Authority ("CMA"). Each regulator has its respective jurisdiction and all have statutory grounds for obtaining a search warrant, with the CMA and HMRC also having limited powers to carry out a dawn raid without a search warrant. Businesses must now consider the impact of remote working on its raid protocol, as authorities may arrive at key individuals' homes. The Digital Markets Competition and Consumers Act has strengthened the CMA's powers to "seize and sift" evidence when conducting raids on domestic premises and to access documents stored remotely.

From a corporate governance perspective, it is imperative you have procedures in place which are tailored to your business to ensure you understand the authorities' powers and appropriately safeguard data. We work with clients to proactively put in place protocols, data processes and training of key employees, to support them in the event of a dawn raid and to implement any remedial advice.