On Friday of last week two senior lawyers from our Private Crime department attended the prestigious Fraud Lawyers Association conference in London. This full-day event, hosted by A&O Sherman in the heart of the city, gathered numerous legal professionals specialising in fraud and financial cases.
The conference boasted a stellar lineup of speakers, including the Director of the Serious Fraud Office, Judges, representatives from the US Department of Justice, and leading solicitors and barristers. The event provided a platform for discussing the latest trends, challenges, and strategies in defending fraud and financial cases.
Our Attendees:
Our lawyers were among the select few representing Scotland at this event, showcasing our firm’s commitment to staying at the forefront of legal developments and ensuring robust defence strategies for our clients.
Levy &McRae remains dedicated to continuous learning and professional development. Attending such high calibre events allows us to maintain our excellence in legal defence, particularly in complex fraud and financial cases.
For more information about our services and expertise in fraud defence, please contact Head of Private Crime, Neil Hay.
As a direct result of our continuous growth and our success in attracting new clients, we are restructuring our Criminal Law Department to provide a more streamlined service for our clients.
In our commitment to providing top-tier legal representation, we have established two new senior positions with Callum Anderson becoming Head of Regulatory Crime and Neil Hay becoming Head of Private Crime. These roles have been created to refine our focus and leverage our extensive expertise in these key areas of criminal law.
The Head of Regulatory Crime will lead for the firm on all professional and regulatory crime, including looking after a number of representative bodies and organisations, as well as overseeing the defence of Health and Safety and regulatory prosecutions, Public Inquiries and Fatal Accident Inquiries.
The Head of Private Crime will lead for the firm in all major areas of criminal law and in financial and white-collar crime for professional, high-profile, high net worth and corporate clients.
Both positions will be filled by highly experienced Solicitor-Advocates from within our ranks, ensuring that our promise of meticulous case preparation and superior court advocacy continues to stand. These seasoned professionals bring a wealth of knowledge and a robust track record of successful outcomes, maintaining our reputation as “The Lawyer’s Lawyers.”
David McKie, senior partner, said: “This restructure enriches the support and advocacy we provide to our clients, ensuring ever more focused and effective representation.
“We value the trust our clients place in us and are dedicated to continuing our work with integrity, confidentiality, and compassion. These changes are designed to reinforce our capability to advocate for your rights and deliver justice, from sheriff courts to the High Court of Justiciary and all forums where regulatory matters are determined.
As always, our team is here for you from the moment of instruction. Contact us for advice, action, and advocacy.
Callum Anderson 07779 622654; canderson@lemac.co.uk
Neil Hay 07866 734524; nhay@lemac.co.uk
We are proud to announce that our Criminal Law Partner Neil Hay has again been featured among the top legal advisers in the 2024 SpearsIndex, a Spears Magazine annual listing of the lawyers working in criminal and white collar crime for high new worth and ultra high net worth clients.
Neil is the only Scottish Criminal lawyer listed by this prestigious directory, and his recognition follows upon him being awarded Crime Lawyer of the Year in the inaugural Legal 500 Scotland Awards last year.
Neil commented: “I am pleased that our professionalism and expertise in Scottish criminal law matters has again been recognised, in particular around the work we do for high net worth individuals where discretion and strategy are so important”.
Neil`s full profile in the 2024 SpearsIndex can be read here: https://www.spears500.com/adviser/12891/neil-hay
Scottish Paralegal Association Glasgow Conference 2024
Neil Hay , Partner at Levy & McRae was delighted to take part in the Glasgow 2024 Scottish Paralegal Association conference last week. Neil spoke to delegates about the new legislation The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021.
Neil said “It was a pleasure to take part in this busy conference on the topic of the new Hate Crime legislation. This is an area of law which has been of great interest to the public and everyone in the legal sector. Overall the conference was a tremendous success. Congratulations to the organising Committee and many thanks for the kind invite to participate.”
Levy & McRae are delighted to sponsor what promises to be a fascinating talk in Grand Hall of The Merchants House of Glasgow this coming Friday 19th April.
The speaker is the incomparable Donald Findlay KC, who is going to speak about the notorious case of Oscar Slater (1872 – 1948), the victim of a notorious miscarriage of justice in Scotland. Wrongly convicted of murder and sentenced to death, Slater was freed after almost two decades of hard labour. His release came about through the efforts of several journalists, lawyers and writers, including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Senior partner, David McKie, said:
‘Although the legal landscape has changed and the death penalty thankfully no longer applies, we still see miscarriages of justice, and this case, although a century old, will highlight the importance of lawyers, campaigners and journalists in the fight to ensure justice is secured, something Levy & McRae have been involved in for many decades and which continues to run through our DNA. The talk is likely to be poignant for many connected our firm, having only recently lost our former senior partner, Len Murray, who represented Anthony Miller in the last ever capital murder trial in Scotland in 1960.
We are very proud to support this event in a wonderful venue and look forward to hearing from such a unique advocate and flamboyant speaker.’
At Levy & McRae we have a long history of being appointed by organisations requiring strategic legal advice and representation in Scotland. In the latest of such appointments, we are pleased to advise that we have been engaged by the Free Speech Union, a UK wide organisation, to act in cases involving its members arising from implementation of the recently introduced Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021.
This is a new statute which has attracted much scrutiny and public debate. It is anticipated that the legislation may lead to legal challenges in the courts, and it is for this reason that Levy & McRae has been secured to provide expert legal advice. Commenting on the appointment Neil Hay, Partner and Solicitor- Advocate commented: “ We are pleased to be appointed as solicitors to Free Speech Union, as we are with all appointments by organisations. Our reputation has been built on robustly examining legislation, taking legal challenges where appropriate, and providing a powerful defence for our clients. This appointment places us at the forefront of scrutinising this new and important area of Scottish criminal law.”
At Levy and McRae we pride ourselves on always being at the forefront of new legal developments, alongside playing a prominent role in the Scottish legal community.
Our Criminal Law Partner Neil Hay was delighted to be Chair at the CLT Scotland Criminal Law Conference held last week. Scotland`s premier criminal law conference featured a day of expert speakers and updates on case law and legislation. Neil also presented a talk on “Using prior statements in Trials” and fellow Partner Callum Anderson of Levy & McRae also delivered a talk on “Media Law for Criminal Court Practitioners”.
Levy & McRae was also represented at the conference by Hannah Fairbrother Hannah Baxter and Mark Maguire.
After a very successful 2023 for our Criminal Defence Private Crime department, the new year commences with our Partner Neil Hay being recognised as Lawyer of the Month in Scottish Legal News.
Neil was also recently awarded The Legal 500 Scottish Crime Solicitor of the Year.
Looking ahead, our focus is clear. We aim to continue to grow our criminal defence practice, building upon our solid foundation of expertise and client service.
Neil continues to explore opportunities in Scotland and other jusrisdictions to provide sector leading criminal defence advice and representation for individuals and companies facing possible prosecution in Scottish courts.
Increasingly Neil and his team also advise companies on compliance with Scottish criminal law matters.
The full Scottish Legal News article can be read here: https://lnkd.in/ezFqPvcQ
We were delighted to attend the inaugural The Legal 500 (Legalease) Scottish awards ceremony held in Edinburgh last night. It was an excellent evening made all the better by our Criminal Partner Neil Hay being awarded Crime Lawyer of the Year.
Neil brings excellence to the work that he does on behalf of our clients. This award rounds off a year where Neil has been ranked highly and commended in all the major legal sector directories for his area of work.
Levy & McRae’s recent recognition by prestigious legal directories such as The Legal 500 (Legalease), Chambers and Partners Directory, Spears 500 and The Times Best Law Firms is a testament to our unwavering dedication to legal excellence and our capability to handle the most complex legal challenges.
We bring discretion, confidentiality, and quality to all of our work, aiming consistently to protect and manage our clients’ interests and reputations. This meticulous attention to client service is why individuals and corporations seeking strategic legal advice and representation repeatedly choose Levy & McRae.
Our lawyers have been recognised in the fields of Defamation and Reputation Management (David McKie, Senior Partner), Crime, Fraud and Licensing ( Neil Hay, David McKie, Callum Anderson, Andrew Seggie), Product Liability (Graham Craik, Carol Boyd) and Medical Negligence: Pursuer (Elizabeth Rose). In addition, Elizabeth Rose was awarded Lawyer of the Year at the Scottish Legal Awards and the team of L&M Medilaw, a division of the firm, were recognised with the Excellence in Client Care award.
Levy & McRae’s prominence is further solidified by our robust independent referral practice and network. When other legal firms or individual lawyers seek independent legal advice, we are often the first point of reference – “the lawyer`s lawyers”.
This not only speaks volumes about Levy & McRae’s legal acumen but also highlights the deep trust and respect we command within the legal community. The firm’s referral cases are not just local but span across the UK and internationally, including those from magic circle firms.
David McKie, Senior Partner commented: “Our staff are the lifeblood of the business. I want to thank everyone for their efforts and commitment to the firm and for helping us achieve this recognition from our peers, and best outcomes at all times for our clients.”
