Brian Spiro - Partner
“Peers say he is ‘a good client handler who instils confidence’” (Chambers
“Brian Spiro is a ‘good tactician’ with ‘good judgement’ ‘a formidable player’ in criminal fraud cases”. (The Legal 500 - The Clients’ Guide to the
Nominated by The Lawyer as “Partner of the Year” in 2009.
Brian Spiro is "a bright, hard-working and extremely capable individual who passionately represents his clients." (Chambers UK - A Client’s Guide to the UK Legal Profession, 2009)
Brian Spiro is "a fantastic lawyer who clients will have every confidence in; he inspires trust very quickly indeed," say barristers. Peers also say that Spiro is a "very experienced lawyer, great to deal with, and reliable." What sets him apart is "his business sense and the way he is with clients." (Chambers UK - A Client’s Guide to the UK Legal Profession, 2008)
"Always covering every angle, Brian Spiro wins adulation for the quiet air of confidence he exudes and for always being in control of things." (Chambers UK - A Client’s Guide to the UK Legal Profession, 2006)
Recommended in the Business Crime section of The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers, 2005, and the White-Collar Crime section of Legal Business’s Legal Experts, 2005.
Brian Spiro specialises in “high loss” business crime litigation, fraud and regulatory matters including Serious Fraud Office, Crown Prosecution Service and HM Revenue & Customs prosecutions and investigations. He has expertise in international law including mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, environmental offences and breach of UN sanctions. He is also noted for his work in advising media organisations on crime and related matters and his representation of high profile individuals.
Brian graduated from the University of Nottingham with an LLB (Hons) in 1980. After a period as a parliamentary adviser working in the House of Commons, he trained as a solicitor with Clifford Chance and Simons Muirhead & Burton, London. He qualified as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England & Wales in 1984 and was made a partner of Simons Muirhead & Burton in 1986 where he stayed until joining BCL Burton Copeland as a partner in 2001.
Brian was a member of the Law Society’s sub-committee and chair of the London Criminal Court Solicitors’ Association sub-committee responding to the UK government’s recent proposals on fraud law reform. He was also chair of the London Criminal Court Solicitors’ Association sub-committee responding to the Home Office’s proposals for reform of the law against bribery and corruption. He is the lead author of the Police Station Adviser’s Index (a practitioners’ textbook on police station procedures, Thomson Sweet & Maxwell), now in its 3rd edition, and has acted as an international consultant to the WHO, the UN and the British Council on criminal law matters.
Brian is a member of the City of Westminster Law Society, the International Bar Association, the Law Society of England & Wales, Lawyers for Liberty and the London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association. He is a regular writer and commentator on criminal law and related issues.
