Kwaku Awuku-Asabre

Contact Kwaku: KwakuAwuku-Asabre@matrixlaw.co.uk | +44 (0)20 7404 3447

Contact Kwaku's Practice Team (Team T): TeamT@matrixlaw.co.uk

Prior to pursuing a career at the Bar, Kwaku worked as a fixed income analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch dealing primarily with structured products in the UK banks space.  Combining this experience with trial advocacy experience in general crime across a range of matters – GBH, murder, attempt rape and aggravated burglary – equipped Kwaku for a practice in financial crime. Kwaku has acted as junior counsel alone, junior – led counsel and disclosure counsel in matters spanning complex POCA, environmental agency prosecutions, complex fraud, large scale bribery, asset forfeiture, FCA investigations, SFO investigations, internal healthcare company investigations, advising corporates on the Bribery Act and money laundering regulations, advising a global tech company on sanctions and defending in the prosecutions of  a company dealing in crypto-currency based products.

Kwaku regularly speaks on subjects of relevance to his practice including a series of talks with Jamas Hodivala KC, on money laundering, environmental crime and supply chain investigations.

Currently Kwaku is a junior counsel instructed to represent 11 former undercover police officers in the Undercover Policing Inquiry, instructed by DAC Beachcroft.

Business Crime/ Regulatory

• R v LA: Junior counsel representing a director of several companies in complex confiscation proceedings brought by the Environment Agency in which EA alleged that the corporate veil should be pierced, and that personal benefit was in excess of £4.6m. A settlement was successfully negotiated of the confiscation order with a benefit figure of £200,000 and an available amount also of £200,000.
• Conducting a series of internal investigations for a multinational healthcare company arising from alleged breaches of policy.
• Part of an FCA investigatory team investigating anti-money laundering failures by Santander Plc.
• Part of an FCA investigatory team investigating anti-money laundering failures by Natwest Plc.
• Acted for the NMC acting as a case presenter in numerous matters.

Fraud/ Bribery

Recent notable cases include:

• R v A: A 4-month VAT conspiracy trial.  A large scale VAT conspiracy  facilitated by the use of offshore banking platforms resulting in the prosecution of twenty defendants over four trials.
• R v P: Part of the litigation team representing a senior executive against allegations of bribery and corruption in a multi-jurisdictional investigation being conducted by the SFO.

Corporate Crime

Kwaku’s work encompasses both defence and advisory work.

Recent notable cases include:

• S – A case concerning a foreign company prosecuted by a UK regulator engaging a number of legal issues concerning mutual legal assistance, foreign blocking statues and territorial scope of the relevant legislation in light of the key objectives in its construction. The legal issues in the case are further shaped by the nature of the crypto-based product offered.
• Advisory work including
  • Advising corporates in relation to compliance with UK Bribery Act and Money Laundering Regulations.
  • Advising a global tech company on potential breaches of  sanctions legislation.

Road Traffic

Kwaku represents clients in driving matters on a frequent basis, in cases ranging from death by careless driving to speeding and use of a mobile phone whilst driving. In each matter he brings the attention to detail and nuanced approach necessary to be effective in this area of law.

• R v JE Death: by careless driving in which JE collided fatally with a cyclist who was pregnant at the time. On a plea and full admission and remorse for the offence a suspended sentence was secured.
• R v YC: An allegation of careless driving. Both YC and the complainant suffered life altering injuries including brain damage following a collision at night, neither party able to remember the incident at all.
• R v NC: Successfully represented a former policeman seen by two officers allegedly using mobile phone whilst driving.

Inquiries, Inquests and Reviews

Inquests include:

• SF: Successful representation of a General Practitioner in a complex and lengthy article 2 jury inquest involving several police forces and NHS hospital trusts.

Inquiries:

Junior counsel led by Richard Whitam KC instructed to represent 11 former undercover police officers in the Undercover Policing Inquiry, instructed by DAC Beachcroft.

Media

Kwaku acts for both defendants and claimants across defamation, privacy, data protection and open justice matters. Recent work includes:

• Big Brother: Reviewing the live stream of the program and flagging issues in relation to third party privacy, defamation, contempt, offensive behavior, undue prominence, music licensing and confidential information.
• Acting as junior counsel in the Mobile Telephone Voicemail Interception Litigation (phone hacking).

Crime

Kwaku’s practice encompasses all areas of criminal defence work focusing particularly upon serious violence, organised crime.

Recent and notable cases include:

• R v JA: Murder trial. Junior Counsel for the first defendant where the second defendant ran a cut-throat defence involving 15 live civilian witnesses.
• R v AT: Aggravated burglary. Despite relevant previous convictions and comments by defendant leading to further convictions relied upon against him in trial, defendant acquitted of the charge.
• R v PL: Joint enterprise knife point robbery involving a vulnerable witness for whom ground rules were required. Several attempts to rely upon the defendant’s bad character made and successfully resisted.
• R v LS: Matter proceeded in absence of the defendant. Possession with intent to supply class B drugs. After police pursuit the defendant was found in the front passenger seat of a vehicle, the driver having made off, holding a bag containing what was said to be class B drugs and associated paraphernalia. LS was acquitted.

Appeals

Appeals cases include:

• DP v AS: Privy Council Appeal concerning piercing of the cooperate veil to allow a party to a contract concerning the rental of commercial property to trace liability to DP as opposed to the company operated by DP which DP held to be the tenant under contract.
• R v JI: Crown court appeal concerning two robbery matters and one matter of joint enterprise knife point robbery. There had been numerous breaches of PACE Code D with regards to the obtaining, recording and disclosure of identification evidence in the Magistrates court, these breaches were dealt with by submission at appeal. Sentence varied at appeal from an 18-month Detention and Training Order to a 12-month Youth Rehabilitation Order with intensive supervision.
• R v JT: Appeal involving 15 separate sets of offences committed across the course of a year. 8 month detention and training order given unlawfully in the Magistrates court.  An approach considering the correct approach to youth sentencing was set out in a skeleton argument and found favour with the court. On appeal the sentence was varied to 4 months Detention and Training Order.

Education and Qualifications

Lord Mansfield Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn
BPTC: City Law School
GDL: City Law School
B.Sc. Economics and Philosophy, London School of Economics (2011)

Other

Kwaku is a member of the Howard League for Penal Reform and the Young Fraud Lawyers Association.

Kwaku is a filmmaker and whilst completing pupillage completed his first short film. The film has played in festivals across the world and in London screened by BFI, BBC and Diversity in Cannes. This summer Kwaku worked with the BFI to curate Black Eyes, Black Lives, a selection of films by black film makers speaking to their experiences.

Kwaku is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. In order to provide legal services to his clients, including advice and representation services, Kwaku needs to collect and hold personal data. This includes his clients’ personal data and the personal data of others who feature in the matter in which he is instructed. To read Kwaku’s privacy notice in full, please see here.