Jonathan Laidlaw KC

Business Crime & Financial Services

Chambers rate Jonathan Laidlaw KC as one of their star silks in financial crime.

More recently he has acted for the Bank of England; he represented GSK in their hearing before the Divisional Court; for Allseas SA in their successful prosecution of those responsible for a €100 fraud upon the company; for subjects in the SFO’s investigations into Rolls Royce; for the CEO of the casino in the Summit Partners case which resulted in all charges being dismissed against him; for PCP in the Barclays litigation; and for Boris Becker.

Jonathan Laidlaw KC presently acts for the subjects of a number of SFO, FCA and DoJ investigations including ENRC along with the owner of a energy supplier in a major fraud investigation.

The 2020 Chambers and Partners said Jonathan Laidlaw KC “is a class act, who’s very smooth in his presentation and very practical” and “he gets the message over in a very charming way – he’s got a very nice way of phrasing things and an effective way of communicating with the court.”

The 2021 guide described him as “a stellar criminal silk and his advocacy is superb. One of his great skills is that he can really put together a case theory that appeals to a jury or judge and comes up with a coherent case strategy”.

The 2022 Legal 500 guide said “A silk who remains serene under pressure, with a strong command of his brief. He is fantastic with clients, particularly in terms of being firm and confident in his advice whilst at the same time empathetic to the client’s position and circumstances.” and “Preeminent in this field”.

The 2023 Legal 500 guide says “Jonny is a brilliant advocate and a great joy to work with. He is also supported by a truly market leading team. He’s fantastic across all areas of financial crime and on big judgment calls he is excellent.” and “top-drawer, he works incredibly hard but makes it look effortless. Always on top of his brief and takes responsibility for all of the big calls on his cases.”

The 2023 Chambers UK guide also says, “Jonathan Laidlaw KC is a top barrister with a wide-ranging practice in financial crime. Having served as First Senior Treasury Counsel, he has in recent years been involved in major SFO investigations into alleged corruption and market manipulation offences. He is highly rated for his defence of directors and companies facing fraud charges …”.  Amongst the testimonials it has been said he, “understands the commercial side of things. He does a great job in court”, “is a great strategist” and “is an expert in the field”.