Johanna Walsh is a Partner in the White Collar Crime & Investigations Group. She has experience in domestic and international serious fraud, corruption and money laundering cases, acting for senior individuals in prosecutions brought by the SFO, FCA and CPS, as well as investigations by the NCA. Johanna has also acted for a range of corporates, from SMEs to FTSE 100 companies in relation to allegations of fraud and corruption, conducting internal investigations and representing them in external investigations and prosecutions.
Johanna is named in Legal 500 in 2018 and 2019 for Regulatory Investigations and Corporate Crime. She is named as a leading individual in Business Crime Defence in the 2019 edition of Who's Who Legal, as well as an Investigations Future Leader in Who's Who Legal's 2019 and 2018 editions, which notes that "her expertise in multi-jurisdictional investigations involving state authorities makes her a go-to practitioner."
She was also recognised in the 2017 edition of 40 Under 40 by the Global Investigations Review, recognising accomplished young investigations lawyers who will help shape the future of this fast-evolving area of law.
Johanna is a member of the Fraud Lawyers Association and the London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association.
Key Experience
- Acting for Tesco Plc in an SFO investigation into accounting irregularities
- Advising a gambling operator in respect of its compliance with anti-money laundering and social responsibility controls in its retail and digital businesses, including conducting a critical review of these controls and reporting to the company and the Gambling Commission
- Acting for a company subject to a section 7 Bribery Act investigation in respect of failure to prevent bribes being paid to domestic public officials
- Advising a company in respect of questionable payments made to agents in Russia and the Middle East, including making disclosures to the SFO and DOJ
- Acting for a multi-national company under investigation by the SFO for global bribery and corruption offences
- Acting for Johnson & Johnson in relation to an SFO investigation into legacy corruption involving DePuy International Ltd
- Assisting in a corporate internal investigation arising out of an SFO investigation into suspected facilitation payments in the shipping industry
- Defending Andy Coulson in relation to allegations of conspiracy to intercept telecommunications and conspiracy to corrupt public officials whilst Editor of the News of the World
- Defending the Group Financial Accountant of Torex plc who was prosecuted by the SFO for conspiracy to defraud and false accounting following the collapse of Torex
- Representing a former director of compliance facing prosecution by the SFO for bribery and corruption
- Representing a senior trader under investigation by the FCA and CFTC for alleged manipulation of Libor
Career History
Partner, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Partner, Kingsley Napley
Articles and Publications
- Financier Worldwide - Strengthening AML protection through AI - 1 July 2018
- Expert Guides: Rising Stars 2018, 4th edition
- Practical Guide: Anti-Money Laundering for Remote Casino Operators in the UK, February 2018
- Global Investigation Review 40 under 40, September 2017
- Volkswagen Under Siege: Unprecedented Search, Unanswered Questions April 2017, Forbes
- Directors face criminal charges and unlimited fines under new regulation, April 2017, Financial Director
- New law forces big firms to come clean on gender pay gap, April 2017, The Times
- Companies to be on the hook to reveal details of how they pay suppliers, April 2017, City A.M.
- Global focus on bribery remains on the individual, October 2015, Solicitors Journal
- DPA corporate monitorships in the UK, September 2015, Global Investigations Review