Images are still loading please cancel your preview and try again shortly.
Eingabehilfen

Investigations

The most challenging issues faced by our clients often involve some form of investigation and we are here to help every step of the way. As regulators gain increasingly broad powers and law enforcement authorities seek to impose greater sanctions, the issues under investigation often pose significant legal, regulatory and reputational risks to businesses and their leaders.

Led by a cross-border, multi-disciplinary team of 17 partners across 12 specialisms, our highly ranked investigations team has the global reach to handle the most complex, multi-jurisdictional internal or external investigations. Increasingly, we see investigations that begin in one jurisdiction expanding in geographic and substantive scope. Regulators’ and enforcement agencies’ investigations often cross borders and so do we; our global, multi-disciplinary team of investigations lawyers brings together a mix of technical expertise and practical experience of dealing with very high-profile and sensitive investigations around the world. Our team has wide ranging sector expertise and includes a number of former senior prosecutors and regulators.

Investigations start in many different ways, often following a whistleblower complaint or self-identification. We conduct internal investigations, tailor the investigation to the problem, help assess risk and advise on reporting and consequence management. When a regulatory or enforcement agency investigation begins, we cover the full process from day one crisis management, all investigatory steps, settlement or contesting sanction, remediation programmes and related follow-on damages claims. We are well used to the challenges of managing parallel firm and individual investigations, as well as parallel criminal investigations. We also advise on root cause analysis, compliance programmes and training to protect your business and mitigate against the likelihood of problems arising.

Integrated into our practice is the latest, cutting-edge technology including Opus 2, which allows us to investigate more efficiently and deliver a cost-effective service to our clients.

 

Specialisms

Select the boxes below to learn more about the core areas of our investigations practice and explore here to learn more about our crisis-management expertise. To find out more please contact one of the investigation team leads named below.

paradise

With our global footprint and on-the-ground experience in multiple jurisdictions our Antitrust & Foreign Investment team supports clients through the broad spectrum of challenges that arise before, during and after an investigation into anticompetitive behaviour. Whether it’s a cartel, an abuse of dominance, a market investigation or a complex vertical investigation, we can guide your strategy of engagement with competition authorities and private litigants across the lifecycle of an investigation.

Explore Antitrust Investigations

water

Business crime related investigations, for example those involving allegations of bribery and corruption, fraud, money laundering or sanctions, can be a serious threat to your reputation and your business. Our global team, which includes former senior prosecutors and regulators from key enforcement agencies, has extensive experience and expertise to advise you on strategic decisions and practical steps relating to the most challenging investigations (whether internal or external), including dealing with authorities and helping you insulate your business from future risk.

Explore Business Crime

projector

We know investigations keep our corporate GCs awake at night. With our global footprint, on-the-ground experience, deep corporate relationships and sector experience, our investigations lawyers can support and guide through every step of the process. Whether it's an internal investigation or one instigated by an enforcement agency, our pragmatic and thoughtful advice, together with deep practical experience, will ease the process. We get to the bottom of the facts fast, and work with our clients on consequence and reputation management, remediation, and recurrence avoidance.

Explore Corporate Investigations

torch

Data privacy or cyber incidents require a crisis response, and our global team has deep experience advising clients on some of the most serious hacking, ransomware and data breach crises in the last decade. We are in frequent contact with key regulators and are in the best possible position to advise you on critical decisions to manage and contain issues, as well as to assist you in relation to internal or external investigations.

Explore Cyber Security

cenote

Regulated utilities are increasingly being subject to both civil and criminal investigations, for example for environmental breaches, customer treatment and financial market conduct. Our cross-practice Energy & Infrastructure investigations team comprises individuals with deep sectoral knowledge who have helped shape the regulatory regime for electricity, gas and regulated utilities in the UK and across the world. We combine that knowledge with investigations best practice to secure the best outcomes for our clients.

Explore Energy & Infrastructure Investigations

cenoteOur global, multidisciplinary ESG team is at the forefront of supporting clients on all aspects of environmental and climate change matters, soft law human rights standards and emerging regulatory expectations, advising on business ethics issues and designing governance frameworks, compliance systems and crisis response strategies across the full spectrum of ESG issues. We act on standalone ESG mandates as well as providing ESG input to support businesses in broader crises, including in relation to investigations (criminal and civil), public inquiries, litigation and stakeholder engagement. We have a deep understanding of the shifting ESG landscape, stakeholder perceptions and the need for a sensitive approach on ESG matters to achieve successful outcomes.

Explore ESG Investigations

canyon

We have unparalleled experience advising financial institutions, corporates and senior executives on their most complex and sensitive regulatory investigations and disciplinary proceedings. We engage proactively and constructively with regulators before they reach conclusions – an approach we have used to secure successful outcomes for many clients. Our clients benefit from our excellent insight into how regulators work and interact. Our team includes individuals who have worked in enforcement at many of the most active regulators, including the DOJ, SEC, FCA, PRA and SFC.

Explore Financial Services Investigations

space

Online safety is one of the newest frontiers in the trend towards greater regulation of online content. New regulatory regimes are emerging across the globe in an attempt to protect users against harmful content online. Our multi-jurisdictional cross-practice team can assist you in navigating regulatory or other investigations and enforcement action.

Explore Online Safety Investigations

space

Our clients trust us with their most high-profile, complex and sensitive people and culture-related investigations, often where regulators are involved. We regularly advise on HR investigations (e.g. disciplinary and grievance processes), and undertake independent investigations into workplace culture (including allegations of bullying, discrimination and harassment), as well as diversity, equity and inclusion matters. Our significant experience includes advising on remuneration-related issues that arise before, during and following the outcome of an investigation (e.g. obligations to freeze or adjust variable pay), particularly in the context of regulators’ evolving expectations in this area.

Explore People and Culture Investigations

Forest

Our market-leading investigations team can advise you on the constantly evolving regulatory landscape and help you to navigate internal and external regulatory investigations in the professional services sector. We have extensive experience assisting clients on high-value, complex domestic and international investigations with significant potential reputational and other consequences on their business and the practitioners involved. Our commercially-minded, global team operates seamlessly to advise you on steps relating to the investigation, implications from its findings, interactions with regulators and remediation.

Explore Professional Services Investigations

sunset

The sports sector is going through a period of rapid change: with increasing revenues and prominence comes ever-greater regulatory and public scrutiny. Our global cross-practice sports sector team has advised teams, clubs, leagues, governing bodies, corporates, financial sponsors and high net-worth individuals on the full range of sporting and commercial issues, including high-profile investigations and disputes concerning sporting, financial and cultural issues. We are one of only a small number of elite global law firms that can assist those in the sports sector with their most business-critical investigations.

Explore Sports Investigations

sunset

Public interest in what is perceived as aggressive tax planning is high. Tax authorities around the world are under increased pressure to actively investigate and fight tax avoidance. We have built a global tax investigation practice advising on complex tax investigations, which can be proactively initiated by clients internally to minimize their exposure or externally triggered by criminal proceedings initiated by tax authorities, public prosecutors and other authorities. We advise our clients on the full spectrum of tax investigations with a particular focus on high profile, multi-jurisdictional issues.

Explore Tax and Criminal Tax Law Investigations

Explore our thought leadership

glass building

Legal Professional Privilege

Close X
Architectural Abstracts

The UK Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Hub

Close X
FRC Image Resized  - Copy

FRC Enforcement - A Year in Review

Close X
person torch

Investigations Insights

Close X
Underwater Beam

Investigations: In-depth – Strategic and practical steps for conducting an Investigation

Close X
Trade association image

Regulating trade associations

Close X
silhouette of business people discussing_getty_thumbnail_1400_600

What does the Financial Action Task Force’s grey listing of South Africa mean?

Close X
shadows

Competition eLearning

Close X
Skyline

Next Generation Cartels and Antitrust Enforcement 2023

Close X
Image of money and handcuffs

The Most Important Issues in Business Crime podcast series

Close X
Image of money and handcuffs

Issues in handling whistleblower allegations – Hong Kong and Singapore

Close X
Business Crime

Global Business Crime Outlook podcast series

Close X
abacus

Government confirms plans for audit and corporate governance reform

Close X
Opus 2 Investigations

Linklaters collaborates with Opus 2

Close X
Led

Online Harms: A comparative analysis

Close X

The FRC sets out principles for ARGA's public interest test

Close X
   

Our Investigations podcast library

Learn more about our global Litigation, Arbitration & Investigations practice
Explore our offering
x Find a Lawyer