Amy's practice encompasses a wide range of work, including criminal, financial services disputes and regulatory.
Experience
Amy has a wealth of advocacy experience, having spent 10 years working as a criminal lawyer in England and Wales. She assists individuals both at the police station and in Court, specialising in the defence of white collar and general crime.
In addition to her criminal practice, Amy assists financial services businesses and their clients in all aspects of legal and regulatory work, including advising on:
the formal and informal freezing of funds;
the forfeiture of funds;
the Guernsey disclosure and consent regime; and
the potential regulatory implications of such matters.
Background
Amy qualified as a solicitor in 2009 and gained her Higher Rights of Audience in England and Wales a year later. Amy started her career in criminal defence, before commissioning as an Officer in the Army Legal Service. This saw her posted within the UK and overseas.
Upon leaving the Army, Amy joined the Crown Prosecution Service, where she undertook a broad range of criminal work. Before joining Collas Crill Amy spent two years specialising in financial crime prevention and investigation at a private bank.
Amy was admitted to the Guernsey Bar in November 2023.
"I pride myself on being able to analyse the information before me, swiftly identifying the surest route to success. I have a significant amount of experience of working with people in crisis, helping them to focus on the important issues, ensuring the best possible outcome."
Expertise
It is a fact of life that all regulated businesses today face ever increasing pressure in the areas of compliance, regulation and risk management. Not only are our businesses required to comply with regulations and laws imposed within each jurisdiction, we need to be alert to impending changes in the UK, EU and elsewhere which could have an impact on the way we operate.
In regulatory disputes there are often fine lines between the usual wrangling with the regulator and something more serious – by matching our mix of experienced contentious and non-contentious lawyers to the particular problem at hand, we achieve better and more efficient outcomes.
As regulatory experts in the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey and Jersey we frequently act on contentious matters and can leverage our experience to help clients achieve the highest regulatory standards and avoid common pitfalls.
We combine pragmatic risk assessment with rigorous legal advice and compliance guidance to reduce exposure and protect reputation, while drawing on our cross-jurisdictional knowledge to design remediation strategies, negotiate with regulators and, where necessary, litigate effectively.
Our collaborative approach ensures clients receive clear, actionable legal advice that balances regulatory obligations with commercial realities, delivers timely, proportionate solutions and supports remediation plans, helping prevent escalation into more serious enforcement action and preserve business continuity.
White collar and financial crime are receiving heightened attention, particularly due to the expanding global presence of businesses, resulting in prosecutions that frequently involve authorities in multiple jurisdictions.
Working across borders we can advise and represent you on complex and sensitive issues, including those relating to fraud, bribery and corruption, sanctions, money laundering and extradition. We can also assist with unlocking assets frozen under the relevant proceeds of crime laws.
We live in an increasingly contentious world. When your business is involved in any kind of legal dispute it's crucial to work with lawyers who are hands-on, cost-effective and flexible enough to respond quickly and intuitively to your unique situation and needs.
Our dispute resolution specialists collaborate seamlessly with our corporate advisory and banking teams across jurisdictions to advise multinational corporations, trust companies, banks, funds, insurers, governments and directors.
We provide a global perspective, working closely with our clients to ensure that they are best placed to respond to customer issues, fraud risks, rapidly changing market conditions and regulatory demands.
Thanks to the depth of our experience and the resources of our team, we've acted on some of the largest pieces of litigation brought against directors offshore.
We're well placed to deal with the 'bet the farm' proceedings that can occur in these type of disputes and have represented parties involved in intra-company disputes, including executive, non-executive and independent directors, majority and minority shareholders, companies and liquidators. We understand that shareholder disputes are often not black and white and our team finds innovative and commercial alternatives to those which the Court may offer – taking a collaborative approach with our clients to ensure that the right result is achieved.
Regulation and legal risk management are placing increasing burdens on companies and businesses in terms of time, costs and resources, and the consequences of getting this wrong can be severe.
We can assist with all regulatory and compliance issues in Jersey, Guernsey, BVI and Cayman including:
anti-money laundering and proceeds of crime legislation
FATCA and CRS reporting
licensing
economic substance
beneficial ownership
sanctions
tax information exchange requests
AIFMD
Additionally we can help with regulator investigations and visits, enforcement and remediation including representation before regulators, tribunals committees and courts. We have an excellent record in defending corporates and their directors and officers in regulatory proceedings.
Please view our Regulatory page for more information.
The regulatory environment, both in local jurisdictions and internationally, is increasingly complex and regulatory agencies are becoming more zealous in their approach to enforcement and investigations.
We guide clients through the impact of enforcement of investigatory actions by regulatory bodies, offering dedicated strategic advice on a broad range of issues including enforcement notices, governance matters, complaints, insider trading and dealing and market manipulation.
We can also assist clients to conduct internal investigations prior to any regulatory investigations.
