Financial Investigations (Northern Ireland) Order 2001

Investigation powers in relation to solicitors

6.  After paragraph 3 of Schedule 2 to the 1996 Order, there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“3A.— (1) Where it appears to a financial investigator that a specified person may have benefited from any conduct to which Article 49 applies the investigator may by notice in writing require any solicitor to furnish specified information to the investigator within a specified time and in a specified manner.

(2) The information which may be specified under sub-paragraph (1) is whether at any time during a specified period the specified person was a client of the solicitor in respect of—

(a) any land or business;

(b) a company, firm, partnership or trust;

(c) a bank or other account; or

(d) any assets in the nature of investments, being assets of the specified person.

(3) Where the specified person was a client as mentioned in sub-paragraph (2), the solicitor shall furnish to the investigator—

(a) the full name of the client;

(b) the most recent and all known previous addresses of the client;

(c) the date of birth (if known) of the client;

(d) other evidence of identity of the client obtained in accordance with the Money Laundering Regulations 1993; and

(e) specified details of the nature of any transaction relating to any matter mentioned in that sub-paragraph.”.