Barry Stancombe

Call 1983
Email barry.stancombe@3pb.co.uk
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Asset and Tax Recovery Group

Barry Stancombe is a specialist in asset forfeiture and proceeds of crime particularly in the areas of restraint, receivership, confiscation, commercial fraud and money laundering.

Barry Stancombe is the Deputy Head of the Asset & Tax Recovery Group and is ranked as a leading junior in Band 1 by Chambers and Partners Directory 2012: "Asset recovery expert Barry Stancombe is also an SFO A-panel member. He has been particularly active in receivership-related work of late, and was also involved in the Briggs-Price matter. Standing counsel to the SFO Grade A, he has been appointed as restraint counsel on a number of major SFO investigations including Lexi Holdings".

He was recommended in Band One of the POCA and Asset Forfeiture Juniors section in Chambers and Partners 2011 Directory.

"Barry is recognised as "a leading player" in the world of asset recovery. His "no-nonsense, very sensible, very pugnacious" advocacy style is widely seen as a welcome breath of fresh air in long-running, highly complex asset forfeiture proceedings."

Barry Stancombe has been involved in proceeds of crime and asset forfeiture work from the inception of this group. He is a member of the Proceeds of Crime Lawyers Association and regularly lectures on asset forfeiture and proceeds of crime issues.

As a practitioner with a strong civil and commercial background, he is regularly instructed on behalf of court appointed management and enforcement receivers in high value receiverships. He has been involved in many of the leading receivership cases before the courts - the most recent case being Windsor & Hare v CPS [2011] EWCA (Crim) 143 (instructed as a leader in the Court of Appeal only).

He acted for the court appointed receiver in Capewell and in the case of Re J [2006] EWCH 3382 (Admin), 30th November 2006, acted for the court appointed management receiver in obtaining an order for the sale of the defendant’s substantial mansion. Another reported receivership case is RCPO v Briggs-Price EWCA (Civ) 14th June 2007.

He is standing counsel to the SFO (Grade A) and appeared for the SFO in the successful appeal in the case of SFO v Lexi Holdings Plc [2008] EWCA Crim 1443; [2009] 1 All ER 586. The Court of Appeal accepted the SFO's submissions that the forfeiture regime is more stringent under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. He is appointed restraint counsel on several large SFO cases including the Birmingham Mortgage Fraud Case (the largest mortgage fraud before the courts) and in the matter of GPN (alleged pension fraud of £52m).

He has acted for RCPO (now the CPS), in a variety of cases in the Administrative Court. For example, on behalf of the RCPO he led Rupert Jones (3PB) in the following cases: application to appoint an enforcement receiver; Re H & J [2005] EWHC 1297 (Admin); resisting a defendant’s application for a Certificate of Inadequacy under the DTA: Re Telli [2006] EWHC 2233 (Admin). The Defendant's appeal was refused by the Court of Appeal on 21st December 2007 [2007] EWCA Civ 1385.

His commercial practice provides in-depth experience of third party claims; interim injunctions; and contempt proceedings. He appeared in the case of Deborah Buildings v Scaffco Limited TLR (1987) which involved a breach of an injunction (disposal of assets).

For many years Barry Stancombe has acted for defendants in substantial confiscation proceedings. He was notably involved in the fishing industry cases where ARA was seeking substantial confiscation orders.

He regularly advises solicitors on POCA issues (money laundering, in particular).

International work has included acting for the Attorney General of the Turks & Caicos Islands