Andy is a Social Housing and Public Law barrister at Cornerstone Barristers. Prior to coming to the Bar, he worked for the Oxfordshire Money Advice Project and spent 4 years as a councillor on Oxford City Council, including time as chair of the Housing Committee. He is the author of 'Cornerstone on Social Housing Fraud', the 3rd edition of which will be published by Bloomsbury Professional in 2025 and has appeared in many of the leading housing cases during his 25 years at the Bar.

Andy Hyatt is a well-known figure in the counter-fraud community, serving as the Shared Service Head of Fraud for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster City Council, and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. At the helm of the Corporate Anti-Fraud Service, Andy leads the charge in preventing, detecting, and deterring fraud across three of London's most prominent local authorities.

With an impressive 30-year career in the fraud arena, Andy is a respected authority in the field. He sits on the board of the National Anti-Fraud Network (NAFN) and plays a pivotal role in the London Borough Fraud Investigators Group (LBFIG), where he previously served as Chair. His dedication to protecting public funds was nationally recognised in 2023 by the Fighting Fraud and Corruption Locally Board.

Beyond his impactful work in local government, Andy's expertise has been sought by major broadcasters, including BBC's Panorama, Inside Out, and ITN News, where he has provided in-depth analysis on high-profile fraud cases. His insights and experience make him a sought-after speaker at conferences and events.

Dawn has been with us since August 2019, and has joined from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) where she was as an investigator. Dawn transferred to DWP from a Local Authority as part of the Single Fraud Service Project in 2015. 

She has been working as an investigator within Local Authorities and the DWP (and its previous incarnations) since 1992, the majority of that time focusing on benefit fraud.

Dawn has a particular interest in Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act investigations and Procurement Fraud.

Michael is a partner in Penningtons Manches Cooper's commercial disputes team and co-heads the firm's Financial Services Sector group. He led the Consumers’ Association (Which?) intervention in Philipp v Barclays Bank UK Plc [2023], in which the Supreme Court considered the application of the Quincecare duty (being the duty of banks to carry out reasonable care and skill when executing a customer's instructions) in relation to Authorised Push Payment fraud. Michael advises clients on a wide variety of financial services and complex commercial disputes many of which involve civil fraud claims, as well as on regulatory investigations and enforcement actions.

Charlie is based in Pennningtons Manches Cooper's Oxford office. He specialises in civil fraud, particularly payment fraud claims. Charlie was a key part of the team that represented the Consumers' Association (t/a Which?), as an intervening party, in the Supreme Court Authorised Push Payment fraud case of Philipp v Barclays Bank UK Plc [2023]. He has also recently acted for an international bank facing significant payment fraud claims from a large number of customers. Charlie is a legal commentator on APP fraud and has featured in Saga Magazine and legal journals and resources including MLex and LexisNexis.

Ruhi Sethi-Smith is a barrister at Forum Chambers. Ruhi has a busy commercial and chancery practice which includes banking and financial services litigation, fraud and insolvency litigation. Ruhi recently appeared in the appeal in Santander v CCP [2025] EWHC 667 (KB) which focused on which banks owed customers a duty to retrieve funds which have been paid as a result of fraud. Ruhi regularly acts for companies and individuals in relation to a wide variety of fraud claims. Ruhi has contributed a number of articles on APP fraud for the Journal of International Banking and Finance Law as well as editing chapters of the Encyclopedia of Banking Law.

An accomplished counter fraud investigator and manager, with over two decades of experience dealing with tenancy fraud for Local Authorities and Housing Associations, Nicola currently works for L&Q as their Tenancy Fraud Manager.  She has been a member of the Tenancy Fraud Forum Executive Committee since November 2018 and is the current Chair of the G15 Fraud Group.

Nicola is a real advocate of raising fraud awareness and considers it a privilege to be able to support the social housing sector in combating fraud in all its guises, through her current role and membership of the TFF board. 

Arun is a lawyer specialising in complex disputes, investigations and compliance regulatory issues arising from fraud and financial crime. In 2016 he founded disruptive law firm Tenet which covers the spectrum of preventative action in the form of training, ethics, governance and policy advice,  to advice on investigations and disputes dealing with recovery of loss from complex fraud.   

He has spent over 15 years advising housing associations on preventing and responding to fraud and contributes to publications and conferences for the National Housing Federation.  Tenet run an annual housing sector fraud conference producing annual best practice guidance on combatting fraud in the sector including on money laundering impacting the sector.

Tenet is an award winning firm has been recognised for its innovation in legal services and has won Boutique Law Firm of the Year at The Legal Business Awards and an award linked to pro bono work at the TECAs for the development of the UK’s first pro-bono fraud advice clinic in association with a Russell Group university.

An experienced solicitor for over 20 years, Arun is a Trustee Director for the Fraud Advisory Panel having been a board member for over 9 years.  He is a member of the Commercial Fraud Lawyers Association and a fellow of the International Compliance Association.

He is a regular speaker and trainer on fraud issues as well as an expert for the BBC providing advice on fraud risks, featuring on programs such as Panorama, Watchdog and Rip Off Britain for over 9 years, commentating in the news for LBC radio, BBC News and BBC Breakfast, Sky News, Radio 4’s Moneybox and in publications such as The Times and The Telegraph.

Emma began her career in Local Government in 2016 as an Assistant Trading Standards Officer at Islington Council. Over the next two years, she trained for and obtained her Diploma in Consumer Affairs and Trading Standards in 2018.

During her time at Islington (2016–2024), Emma undertook investigations and prosecutions for the Trading Standards team, focusing on product safety, scams, and fair trading law. She also worked collaboratively on enforcement activities relating to illicit and underage goods, lettings, and Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES).

In 2022, alongside her Trading Standards work, Emma began training with the National Crime Agency to become an Accredited Financial Investigator. Now fully qualified, she conducts money laundering investigations and confiscation proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 across various council departments.

In 2024, Emma joined Westminster Council, continuing in the same role.

Vicky has worked in Tenancy Fraud for almost 20 years, initially as an Investigator and now as Housing Investigations Team Leader for the well-established tenancy fraud team at Islington Council. During this time she has managed complex investigations into all types of tenancy fraud including subletting, not principal home, and fraudulent housing and succession applications as well as providing valuable guidance on policies and procedures within the organisation. She has brought prosecutions for both subletting and fraudulent housing applications, and recovered funds via compensation orders, Unlawful Profit Orders and under the Proceeds of Crime Act.