Category Archives: BRICS

Russia's posthumous trial of lawyer shows corruption is still rife

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Here is my latest article published in the Guardian:

This week it was announced that the Russian authorities are planning to resubmit a tax evasion case for trial. Nothing out of the ordinary, you might think, except for the fact that the defendant is deceased.

The accused in question is Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer who died in a Moscow prison cell in November 2009. Magnitsky was initially detained in November 2008 on suspicion of assisting one of his clients – UK-based investment fund Hermitage Capital – evade about $17.4m in taxes. Although the original allegations were lodged against Hermitage, during the investigation Magnitsky discovered what he believed to be a cover-up for Russian state officials to embezzle an estimated $230m from the Russian treasury.

Published on 09-02-12. Read on here

Laying Down the Law: corruption and governance in the workplace

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During my time as Knight Fellow at the Salzburg Global Seminar this August, I interviewed in-house counsel at Siemens and Raytheon Company who took part in a panel discussion on corruption, governance and democracy. The interviews with Peter Solmssen, general counsel and member of the managing board of Siemens AG and Robert Shanks, the vice president of legal international operations at Raytheon formed the basis for a feature piece in the October issue of The In-House Perspective, the magazine of the IBA corporate counsel forum. Unfortunately it’s subscription only access, but if you’re interested in reading the article, email me to request a PDF version.

Rosneft embraces new western partner after abortive BP deal

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Here is my latest piece published in the IBA Global Insight newsfeed:

The news this week that ExxonMobil has signed a deal with Rosneft to explore oil and gas reserves in Russia’s Arctic shelf has ruffled more than a few feathers.

As IBA Global Insight reported earlier this year, after initial excitement, BP and Rosneft’s momentous US$16bn share swap deal quickly fell apart following a dispute with Russian investors in TNK-BP (BP’s existing Russian joint venture).

BP was eventually forced to pull out of the tie-up in May and the fiasco was an embarrassment for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had previously endorsed the deal.

Published on 02-09-11. Read on here

On the record

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Here is my latest article published in Prospect:

Through Wikileaks, phone-hacking, and the obstacles facing journalists across the Middle East, the traditional practices of the media industry have come up against many challenges over the past year. According to Reporters Without Borders, around 57 journalists were killed last year in connection with their work. This month a new play On the Record arrives at London’s Arcola Theatre, dramatizing the dangers faced by the world’s independent journalists.

Stories about journalists are usually reported either in print or in documentaries, so it is rather novel that Christine Bacon and Noah Birksted-Breen have decided to bring the stories of six real-life journalists to the stage. As Birksted-Breen notes, “it has been a challenge, as obviously the relationship between the actors and the audience is quite different in documentary theatre compared with film documentaries. There isn’t a lot of theatre about journalism and when there is, it’s usually satirising journalism. We really wanted to show how big a difference there is between independent journalism and mainstream media.”

Published on 26-07-11. Read on here

South Africa invited to form ‘BRICS’ Grouping

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Here is my first short piece published on the news feed for IBA Global Insight:

Following its successful hosting of the FIFA World Cup 2010 last summer, South Africa has had much to celebrate. In December, the coveted BRIC group opened its doors to South Africa and invited the country to a meeting in Hainan in April. The decision has been met with some criticism, but the invitation to become the ‘S’ in ‘BRICS’ highlights the country’s growing importance on the world stage.

Published on 11-05-11. Read on here

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