Guest blog by third year Law student Bronia Richards
Chris Recker of Trowers & Hamlins provided a guest lecture on the extent of commercial fraud in the UK and the realities of commercial law in practice.
Highlighting the importance of tackling fraud across the board, from low-level fraud right through to corporate level fraud, Chris emphasised the extensive damage that fraud can cause to people’s lives. Chris gave an example of an experience he had met in practice, what is known as “Man in the Middle Fraud”, a crime that so many of us could face on a daily basis without anyone realising it. The “Man in the Middle Fraud” begins life in an establishment such as a coffee shop, or a bar where there is free Wi-Fi. The fraudster will pose as the establishment’s Wi-Fi, from which the unsuspecting victim will log into. At this point, the fraudster is able to impose and watch the victims network, and see everything that he is doing. Logging into accounts with confidential passwords, inputting card details, addresses, emails, the fraudster gains access to an abundance of confidential information. The damage and loss to the victim that can then be caused is catastrophic.
Chris also provided an insight into the life of a commercial lawyer in practice. Drawing on his own experiences from his undergraduate studies at UWE to life as a trainee solicitor, Chris detailed the true realities and challenges he faced of in the “real world” in building his legal career.
Chris also detailed the types of work and the broad range of cases covered as a commercial lawyer. Whilst highly demanding, Chris explained that life as a commercial lawyer was never boring and incredibly rewarding. With work ranging from investigations of fraud allegations, to documentation reviews and injunctive relief, life as a commercial lawyer always provides new challenges.