SARA GEORGE has a wealth of experience in UK and international regulatory and criminal investigations and crisis management.
Corporations, individuals, and governments turn to Sara for guidance relating to allegations of involvement in regulatory contraventions and criminal offences, including market abuse, insider dealing, money laundering, cybersecurity breaches, fraud, corruption, and bribery.
As the leader of Sidley’s Crisis Management and Strategic Response team in Europe, Sara is also frequently called upon to advise clients on misconduct issues and reputational management, compliance, and internal investigations.
Sara has extensive experience in international criminal and regulatory investigations involving the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and in cases brought by European regulators, police forces, and the Serious Fraud Office (SFO). Sara has represented a party in every significant prosecution brought by the SFO in recent years, including the LIBOR prosecutions and Foreign Exchange Benchmark manipulation trials.
Clients benefit from Sara’s advocacy prowess as a former criminal barrister who has appeared before the Financial Services Tribunal, the Regulatory Decisions Committee of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Crown Court, and the Court of Appeal.
As a former prosecutor for the Financial Services Authority (FSA), Sara was involved in several groundbreaking matters – including the first criminal prosecution by the FSA against a director for misleading the market (Regina v. Rigby and Bailey), the first Listing Rule contravention, numerous market abuse cases, and refusals of authorization.
Chambers UK 2023 recognizes her for Financial Services: Contentious Regulatory, Financial Crime: Individuals, and Financial Crime: Corporates, with clients saying “Sara is absolutely amazing - talented, well connected, knowledgeable, forward-thinking and above all a pleasure to deal with.” A leading individual in Chambers UK 2022 for both Financial Crime and Financial Services, sources describe Sara as “a brilliant lawyer and trusted adviser.” Clients in the 2021 edition also say “[s]he is a truly amazing lawyer and has fantastic depth of experience, knowledge and analysis of the law. She is very forward-thinking and proactive in her approach.” Sources from the 2019 edition describe her as “fearless” and say that “she is a strong lawyer and a strong advocate.” It is also noted that “she’s a real FCA specialist; she knows that world inside out.”
In the 2023 edition of The Legal 500 UK, Sara is recognized as a “Leading Individual” for Fraud: White-Collar Crime (Advice to Individuals), and also recognized for Financial Services: Contentious Regulatory, and Regulatory Investigations and Corporate Crime (Advice to Corporates). One client told the publication “Sara is truly the best lawyer I have every worked with. Her knowledge, network, forward thinking, commitment is truly exceptional.” Clients in the 2022 edition described Sara as “an excellent attorney with a great ability to foresee case developments and act accordingly,” with “real criminal law skills but applied to complex white-collar work.” She is “the epitome of calm and has a steely nerve.”
Sara has also been recognized in Best Lawyers 2022 for Financial Services.

パートナー
Sara George
- 公認会計士・職業賠償責任
- Securities Enforcement and Regulatory
- ホワイトカラー犯罪:政府訴訟/捜査
経験
- 代表案件
- メンバーシップ&アクティビティ
In recent years, Sara has worked on the following matters:
- Advising the underwriters on the US$1 billion SEC-registered offering by Spanish issuer Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria.
- Advising accountants in relation to professional disciplinary proceedings.
- Advised a global law firm on an investigation into misconduct by a partner.
- Advised a number of senior managers and partners in relation to misconduct allegations made against them by junior staff.
- Advising several of the most senior traders and executives at major investment banks in relation to the global FX spot fix, LIBOR and EURIBOR manipulation investigation.
- Representing the Bank of England whistle-blower in liaisons with the U.S. DOJ regarding a safe passage agreement to assist with their investigation.
- Advising banks in relation to alleged money laundering.
- Advising banks and senior individuals on matters relating to the UK Bribery Act 2010.
- Successfully defended a retail bank over an FSA enforcement investigation in relation to FSA claims that deficiencies in their systems and controls posed risks of unsuitable mortgage advice to customers.
- Advised an investment company in relation to a complaint raised by an investor in one of the client’s unregulated collective investment schemes.
- Secured upheld complaints from the Complaints Commissioner concerning the conduct of FCA staff at a meeting with senior officers of an international brokerage firm and secured an apology from the FCA.
- Advised on a high-profile FSA criminal investigation into allegations that fraudulent statements were made to the market and that misrepresentations were made in the firm’s accounts.
- Advising and representing banking clients with regards to enforcement investigations in relation to FCA claims of deficiencies in their systems and controls posing risks of unsuitable advice to customers.
- Advised an oil trading brokerage firm on an FSA investigation into market abuse committed by a trader at the company.
- Secured an upheld complaint from the Complaints Commissioner concerning the conduct of FCA staff in relation to the failure to disclose that a financial penalty was time-bound.
- Conducted an internal investigation following a whistle-blower complaint that members of the client’s team bidding for a PFI contract to provide services to the UK Government allegedly received confidential information from a former Ministry of Defence employee, who was subsequently employed by the client.
- Represented a global inter-dealer broker in relation to an investigation where staff were alleged to have systematically defrauded the firm, involving the first use by the FSA of powers under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act to agree a reduced sentence or “plea bargain” for an assisting offender.
- Conducted an investigation by an inter-dealer brokerage firm into employees alleged to have paid kickbacks to clients to secure orders.
- Investigated allegations of money laundering for politically exposed persons in Central Asia by a state-owned Russian bank.
- Advised on business conduct policy and procedures in respect of operations in the Nigerian oil delta.
- Advised a reinsurer in relation to a claim worth US$250 million, who suspected an attack on an insured vessel had been faked and that the salvage company was complicit in the fraud.
- Advising a hedge fund in relation to the mismarking of portfolios.
- Conducted for an insurance broker an investigation and advised on self-reporting obligations following the identification by the firm's auditors of irregular payments to third parties in excess of the agreed normal commission arrangements.
* Some of the above matters were handled by Sara prior to joining Sidley.
- Financial Women’s Association (FWA)
得意分野
業務内容
- 公認会計士・職業賠償責任
- Crisis Management and Strategic Response
- Securities Enforcement and Regulatory
- ホワイトカラー犯罪:政府訴訟/捜査
- 裁判外紛争処理
- マネーロンダリング対策
- 独占禁止法・競争法
- 独占禁止法違反調査業務
- Banks and Financial Institutions Crisis Management and Strategic Response
- コンプライアンス カウンセリング - ホワイト カラー
- 議会による調査
- 消費者金融その他金融サービスの訴訟と執行
- 消費者向け製品・サービス関連訴訟
- Corporate Risk Management and Critical Matters
- サイバーセキュリティ・サイバー犯罪・データ侵害
- Environmental Enforcement and Internal Investigations
- 海外腐敗行為防止法/汚職禁止
- 金融情報とプライバシー法
- 金融機関カウンセリング
- 金融機関訴訟
- 金融サービスと政府契約
- 金融サービス訴訟
- 金融、証券、会計賠償責任控訴審
- Fintech
- グローバル金融サービス
- 通商政策と交渉
- 会計士に関する政府および規制当局の捜査
- 政府契約
- 医療分野強制執行
- 医療詐欺
- 情報セキュリティとデータ侵害
- インサイダー取引
- 内部調査
- 国際会計士責任例
- 国家安全保障
- 法律事務所代表
- Media and Entertainment Crisis Management and Strategic Response
- Non-Profits and Education Crisis Management and Strategic Response
- 支払い
- Regulatory Advocacy and Counseling
- Securities Enforcement
- Securities Regulatory Counseling and Compliance
- スポーツ
- 役員と取締役による証券取引
- 公判
- UK Accountancy Investigations and Enforcement
ニュース&インサイト
資格
弁護士資格・登録
- England and Wales (Barrister)
- Barrister
学歴
- Inns of Court School of Law, Bar Vocational Course, 1998
- City University, London, Graduate Diploma in Law, 1997
- University of Oxford, M.A. in Oriental Studies, 1996