[Home] [Databases] [World Law] [Multidatabase Search] [Help] [Feedback] | ||
England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division) Decisions |
||
You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division) Decisions >> Financial Services Authority v Fradley & Woodward [2005] EWCA Civ 1183 (23 November 2005) URL: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2005/1183.html Cite as: [2005] EWCA Civ 1183, [2006] 2 BCLC 616 |
[New search] [Printable RTF version] [Help]
COURT OF APPEAL (CIVIL DIVISION)
ON APPEAL FROM The High Court of Justice
Chancery Division
(Mr John Martin QC)
Strand, London, WC2A 2LL |
||
B e f o r e :
LADY JUSTICE ARDEN
and
MR JUSTICE COLLINS
____________________
Financial Services Authority |
Appellant/ Respondent |
|
- and - |
||
Fradley & Woodward |
Respondents/Appellant |
____________________
Smith Bernal WordWave Limited
190 Fleet Street, London EC4A 2AG
Tel No: 020 7421 4040 Fax No: 020 7831 8838
Official Shorthand Writers to the Court)
Mr Sean Fradley in person
____________________
Crown Copyright ©
Lady Justice Arden:
The statutory framework
"19. The general prohibition
(1) No person may carry on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom, or purport to do so; unless he is-
(a) an authorised person; or
(b) an exempt person.
(2) The prohibition is referred to in this Act as the general prohibition.
21. Restrictions on financial promotion
(1) A person ("A") must not, in the course of business, communicate an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity.
(2) But subsection (1) does not apply if-
(a) A is an authorised person; or
(b) the content of the communication is approved for the purposes of this section by an authorised person.
(3) In the case of a communication originating outside the United Kingdom, subsection (1) applies only if the communication is capable of having an effect in the United Kingdom.
(4) The Treasury may be by order specify circumstances in which a person it to be regarded for the purposes of subsection (1) as-
acting in the course of business;
not acting in the course of business.
(5) The Treasury may by order specify circumstances (which may include compliance with financial promotion rules) in which subsection (1) does not apply.
(6) An order under subsection (5) may, in particular, provide that subsection (1) does not apply in relation to communications-
of a specified description;
originating in a specified country or territory outside the United Kingdom.
originating in a country or territory which falls within a specified description of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom; or
originating outside the United Kingdom.
(7) The Treasury may by order repeal subsection (3).
(8) "Engaging in investment activity" means
(a) entering or offering to enter into an agreement the making or performance of which by either party constitutes a controlled activity; or
(b) exercising any rights conferred by a controlled investment to acquire, dispose of, underwrite or convert a controlled investment.
(9) An investment is a controlled activity if
(a) it is an activity of a specified kind or one which falls within a specified class of activity; and
(b) it relates to an investment of a specified kind, or to one which falls within a specified class of investment.
(10) An investment is a controlled investment if it is an investment of a specified kind or one which falls within a specified class of investment.
(11) Schedule 2 (except paragraph 26) applies for the purposes of subsections (9) and (10) with references to section 22 being read as references to those subsections.
(12) Nothing in Schedule 2, as applied by subsection (11), limits the powers conferred by subsections (9) or (10).
(13) "Communicate" includes causing a communication to be made.
(14) Investment includes any asset, right or interest.
(15) "Specified" means specified in any order made by the Treasury.
22. The classes of activity and categories of investment
(1) An activity is a regulated activity for the purposes of this Act if is an activity of a specified kind which is carried on by the way of business and-
(a) relates to an investment of a specified kind; or
(b) in the case of an activity of a kind which is also specified for the purposes of this paragraph, is carried on in relation to property of any kind.
(2) Schedule 2 makes provision supplementing this section.
(3) Nothing in Schedule 2 limits the powers conferred by subsection (1).
(4) "Investment" includes any asset, right or interest.
(5) "Specified" means specified in an order made by the Treasury…"
235. Collective investment schemes
(1) In this Part "collective investment scheme" means any arrangements with respect to property of any description, including money, the purpose or effect of which is to enable persons taking part in the arrangements (whether by becoming owners of the property or any part of it or otherwise) to participate in or receive profits or income arising from the acquisition, holding, management or disposal of the property or sums paid out of such profits or income.
(2) The arrangements must be such that the persons who are to participate ("participants") do not have day-to-day control over the management of the property, whether or not they have the right to be consulted or to give directions.
(3) The arrangements must also have either or both of the following characteristics-
(a) the contributions of the participants and the profits or income out of which payments are to be made to them are pooled;
(b) the property is managed as a whole by or on behalf of the operator of the scheme.
(4) If the arrangements provide for such pooling as is mentioned in subsection (3)(a) in relation to separate parts of the property, the arrangements are not to be regarded as constituting a single collective investment scheme unless the participants are entitled to exchange rights in one part for rights in another.
(5) The Treasury may by order provide that arrangements do not amount to a collective investment scheme –
(a) in specified circumstances; or
(b) if the arrangements fall within a specified category of arrangements.
418. Carrying on regulated activities in the United Kingdom
(1) In the four cases described in this section, a person who-
(a) is carrying on a regulated activity, but
(b) would not otherwise be regarded as carrying it on in the United Kingdom,
is, for the purposes of this Act, to be regarded as carrying it on in the United Kingdom.
(2) The first case is where-
(a) his registered office (or if he does not have a registered office his head office) is in the United Kingdom;
(b) he is entitled to exercise rights under a single market directive as a UK firm; and
(c) he is carrying on in another EEA State a regulated activity to which that directive applies.
(3) The second case is where-
(a) his registered office (or if he does not have a registered office his head office) is in the United Kingdom;
(b) he is the manager of a scheme which is entitled to enjoy the rights conferred by an instrument which is a relevant Community instrument for the purposes of section 264; and
(c) persons in another EEA State are invited to become participants in the scheme.
(4) The third case is where-
(a) his registered office (or if he does not have a registered office his head office) is in the United Kingdom
(b) the day-to-day management of the carrying on of the regulated activity is the responsibility of-
(i) his registered office (or head office); or
(ii) another establishment maintained by him in the United Kingdom.
(5) The fourth case is where-
(a) his head office is not in the United Kingdom; but
(b) the activity is carried on from an establishment maintained by him in the United Kingdom.
(6) For the purposes of subsections (2) to (5) it is irrelevant where the person with whom the activity is carried on is situated. "
"Establishing collective investment schemes
8. Establishing, operating or winding up a collective investment scheme, including acting as-
(a) trustee of a unit trust scheme;
(b) depositary of a collective investment scheme other than a unit trust scheme; or
(c) sole director of a body incorporated by virtue of regulation under section 262."
"51 Establishing a collective investment scheme
(1) The following are specified kinds of activity –
(a) establishing, operating or winding up a collective investment scheme…"
Background
"5. The scheme, which came into existence in the late summer of 2002, involved the use of unsolicited mailshots, sent to members of the public by 147 but taking the form of an invitation from Peter Ebdon and John Parrott (each of whom is a well-known snooker player) to participate in a scheme to make money on horse race betting by utilising information not generally available to the public. The scheme was characterised as "investing in horse racing". Investors in the scheme would provide a minimum sum of £500, known as a "betting bank", and were told that they stood a realistic chance of increasing their betting bank by a factor of 10 each year. Membership cost £97 a month, rising to £447 a month after twelve months. The mailshot included an application form for membership of 147, which contained a standing order mandate in favour of 147; and a form appointing TBPS the member's agent for the purpose of placing bets. It was not initially compulsory to use TBPS for bet placement: members would receive confidential information and could place bets themselves, but they were encouraged in the mailshot to use TBPS's services. Once accepted into the scheme, members were sent an acceptance letter; and if they had applied to use TBPS's services, they were also sent TBPS's terms and conditions. Those terms and conditions provided (among other things) that the member's betting bank would be held in TBPS's client account, out of which payments could only be made for the purpose of payments to bookmakers, repayment to the members, or payment to TBPS's management fee and "placement levy"; and that clients' accounts would be updated daily and computerised accounts issued monthly."
19 August 2002 to October 2002 ("the first period")
October 2002 to 12 February 2003 ("the second period")
12 February 2003 to 9 March 2003 ("the third period")
9 March 2003 to 4 April 2003 ("the fourth period")
4 April 2003 to 21 August 2003 ("the fifth period").
"Our associated bets placement company [TBPS] does it all for you following our instructions…and our "no effort" and placement service ensures that all bets go on exactly as planned with no personal involvement or fuss. You just sit back and enjoy the thrill of seeing the system work and making profits…it's totally automated…"
The judgment of Mr John Martin QC
The issues on the appeals
i) did the tipping service offered by 147 and the bet placement service offered by TBPS collectively constitute a single set of "arrangements", operated by 147 and TBPS together, for the purposes of section 235 of FSMA?ii) if the answer to (a) is yes, did the participants in those arrangements have day-to-day control over the management of their property for the purposes of section 235 of FSMA?
iii) if the answer to (b) is no, did the arrangements cease to be subject to FSMA when Mr Fradley moved out of the jurisdiction in April 2003?
"The view the FSA has now reached is dependent on indications in the documentation which you have kindly supplied that participants in the scheme will have day-to-day control over the management of their money. Should this not, in fact, prove to be the case, so that the scheme in fact operates outside the strict parameters proposed, the FSA reserves the right to consider taking civil and/or criminal proceedings against your client."
The reservation of the right to bring proceedings if further information was received was repeated in a letter dated 4 April 2003 stating that the FSA did not intend to pursue its then existing inquiries.
Disposition
Collins J
Ward LJ