Fraudulent Emails involving Chambers or Members of Chambers

The Bar Council has received many recent reports of fraudulent emails and letters naming individual barristers acting in certain financial proceedings or for certain organisations. The emails typically refer to large amounts of money from a will being potentially available to the recipient of the email, and recipients are later asked to provide a bank account into which the money can be deposited, as well as other personal information. Other common scenarios include a member of the Bar being named as the paymaster of an international lottery and asking for bank details into which a prize can be paid and Chambers being advertised as a place of education and asking for personal details and money in return for schooling. The barristers’ names and Chambers' address are used to attempt to add credibility to a process which is designed to steal money from those who respond to the emails or letters.

Any chambers which becomes aware of an email or letter using either its name, or the name of one or more of its tenants, are advised to immediately post a prominent disclaimer on its website. Furthermore, all such emails should be reported to the relevant internet service provider. Chambers may also wish to inform the police of the fraudulent emails or letters.