Inside Risk and Compliance

In this episode, we speak with Graham Barrow , financial crime investigator and co-host of The Dark Money Files podcast, about the global fight against dirty money and the unexpected path that led him there. Graham shares how a chance training contract catapulted him into the world of financial crime, taking him from crash courses in compliance to high-risk assignments in Mexico and Istanbul, wher...

In this episode, we sit down with Hinesh Mistry , Director of Risk and Compliance at Howard Kennedy , to explore his fascinating career journey and the evolving role of compliance in the legal industry. From fee-earning in litigation to shaping regulatory policy at the SRA, and now leading high-impact compliance teams, Hinesh shares what he’s learned along the way, including why risk and complianc...

In this episode, we talk to Alexandra Iliff , COLP and Group Legal Compliance Officer at Shakespeare Martineau and AMPA Group , about navigating risk and compliance in complex, multidisciplinary legal businesses. Alexandra shares her career journey from litigation to regulatory work at the SRA, and ultimately into senior in-house compliance roles, where she now oversees risk across a wide group of...

In this episode, we talk to Henry Olsen , Senior Business Acceptance Manager at Mishcon de Reya , about building a people-first career in risk and compliance, and why curiosity, culture, and trust matter more than ever. Henry shares how a short-term role in financial crime sparked a lasting passion for compliance, and how his career has grown from analyst to leader by staying curious, embracing co...

In this episode, we welcome back Amy Bell ,  Founder and CEO of Teal Compliance and AML Sorted , and chair of the Law Society’s Economic Crime Committee, to talk about the biggest AML reform you’ve probably not heard enough about: Australia’s long-overdue regulation of lawyers, accountants and real estate agents. Amy shares insights from her recent work on the ground in Australia, where thousands...

In this episode, we speak with Mike Chapman , Managing Director responsible for the Global Business Acceptance Team at A&O Shearman , about what it takes to build a long and impactful career in legal risk and compliance. Mike reflects on his journey from entry-level analyst at Linklaters to senior leadership roles at firms like Dentons and A&O Shearman, sharing how the compliance function...

Today we're talking to Suzie Ogilvie , a seasoned financial crime consultant ( OGIRO Risk ) and former Global Head of Financial Crime and Sanctions at Freshfields, to explore a career at the intersection of law, policy, and purpose. Suzie reflects on her move from private practice into the then-emerging world of law firm compliance, and how her interest in regulation and risk evolved into a lo...

We’re joined by Eloise Butterworth , Senior Associate in the risk and compliance team at Foot Anstey and a Top 25 Legal LinkedInfluencer, to talk about career change, communication, and carving out your own path in compliance. We explore the importance of self-awareness, storytelling, and speaking your stakeholders’ language, and how LinkedIn became not just a creative outlet, but a powerful tool...

Amasis Saba is our guest this week, Head of Business Acceptance at Simmons & Simmons . Amasis shared a wealth of information and advice, making this episode an invaluable listen for anyone wanting to build a meaningful career in this field. We discussed dealing with fee earners as your customers, progressing to Head of level without being a qualified solicitor, and the importance of deeply und...

Kate Burt is with us this week, Founder and CEO of Hive Risk , a boutique consultancy supporting law firms with their approach to risk and compliance. We talked about how difficult it is for firms to achieve 100% AML compliance and the importance of the compliance team not taking a query at face value and actually understanding the nuance behind it. Kate also explained Hive Risk’s expertise in dig...

We were so excited to speak to James Rickett , Global Lead for Anti Money Laundering and Sanctions Compliance at The International Compliance Association . He did an absolutely incredible job of bringing this subject matter to life and putting it in real-world terms, so we can really see the positive impacts this work has. A must listen! We also talked about: - What are sanctions, and do they work...

This week, we spoke to Frank Maher , currently Partner of Legal Risk LLP, soon to be a Partner at Keystone Law . We discussed Frank's journey to building Legal Risk LLP - the first firm of practising solicitors to specifically advise law firms on professional indemnity insurance and professional regulation, and why legal privilege is so important to what they do. We talked about navigating the...

Welcome to Jonathon Bray , director of Jonathan Bray Limited , a specialist law firm compliance consultancy. Jon took us through the pitfalls of working with outcomes-focused regulation and what's lacking in the SRA guidance. We discussed what an ABS is and how a business like this may approach compliance. We also talked about some of the new challenges on the horizon for law firms and their risk...

We spoke to Steve Brett , Co-founder of E3 Compliance Training , who is on a mission to rid the world of grudge training and box ticking. Just because someone has completed the training, doesn't mean they've engaged with it. Did you know people have been known to pay their kids to do their compliance training for them?! Find out Steve's strategies for creating engaging training in this week's epis...

This week, we spoke to Ed Turner , Strategic Risk Partner at Mishcon de Reya . It was fantastic to hear Ed's point of view on compliance and how it fits in with the wider business. We talked about measuring the success of a risk and compliance function on the right metrics, and not pigeonholing it with the wrong ones, and how creating alignment between the risk and compliance function and the...

This week, we spoke with Jessica Cook , a senior risk and compliance professional in the offshore world. She gave us a great insight into compliance at offshore law firms in places like the Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands, the differing challenges that these firms face and how Hollywood has contributed to the misconceptions that surround them. Jessica also spoke about the vital importanc...

This week, we are joined by Asal Heydari, Global Head of Business Acceptance and Conflicts Management at Clyde & Co . Asal has been in law firm risk and compliance since the industry began and has a fantastic perspective on how the space works. She talked about how to assess urgency when fee earners bring their clients and matters to be cleared, and the benefits of not giving exact timeframes....

In this episode, we spoke to Charlotte Murray , Solicitor in Risk and Compliance at Clarke Willmott . Charlotte told us how she qualified as a solicitor via CILEX after years of unsuccessful training contract applications, and wishes she had known about this route sooner. After qualifying, she fell into the wonderful world of risk and compliance and has never looked back. We talked about how valua...

In this episode, we spoke to Mark Penlington , Director of Risk and Internal Audit at Irwin Mitchell . Mark gave us some fascinating insights into what an internal audit function is and why it’s so important. Internal audit is there to support you and get you the resources and help you need, rather than just looking over your shoulder and pointing out what you’ve done wrong, and how internal audit...

This week, we spoke to Jessie Williams , Head of Risk & Compliance at Excello Law , about her career in law firm risk and compliance. We covered how compliance departments are perceived within a law firm and how this can be improved upon, how legal education seems to leave out the importance of risk and compliance, the fairness of personal sanctions, as well as Jessie’s most valued skill: neve...

Our guest this week was Bea Berry , Risk & Compliance Advisor at Stevens & Bolton . Bea shared how she fell into risk and compliance, and we discussed whether you need to be qualified to succeed in this space (hint, you don’t!) Bea explained how full-cycle project management brings a creative element to compliance, and it’s not always just about doing everything by the book - there’s a lot...

This week, we spoke to James Smither , Head of Risk Management at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer . The conversation covered some huge topics such as: what is enterprise risk and why is it important, how and why should we think about risk appetite, being unapologetically proud of your role as a risk and compliance professional, and how to make the legal profession more inclusive for neurodiverse pe...

We spoke to Pekka Dare, President of the International Compliance Association. In this fascinating conversation, Pekka explained how compliance and commerciality go hand in hand and that doing the right sort of sustainable business is likely to be more profitable in the long run. We discussed how the beauty of a career in compliance is that it isn’t just theoretical, the work relates to very real...

We had the honour of speaking to Amy Bell, Founder of Teal Compliance. Amy let us in on her compliance framework that works, why it’s vital to have controls in place to check policies and procedures are actually working, and how to create a culture that supports compliance within a law firm. Amy shared her struggles with stress and mental health while working as a solicitor as a result of the pres...