Vincent Coughlin QC

Year of Call: 1980

Vincent Coughlin QC has an outstanding track record defending in both financial crime and general criminal work. In the former area, his experience encompasses a string of complex VAT, pensions and corporate frauds, including a multi-million pound offshore ‘pension busting’ fraud as well as several notorious ‘M-TIC’ frauds.

Corruption cases have been a particular area of interest following on from his performance for the main defendant in the headline-grabbing corruption case arising from the removal and export of MoD hardware from the ABRO Donnington army repair base. He was also involved in a ten-year commercial corruption investigation concerning the Mars Corporation, Slough.

He has been instructed in cases referred to the Court of Appeal by the Criminal Cases Review Commission, and has recently led the successful attack on a number of convictions from Leeds Crown Court in 1999 arising from an historic abuse case at a children’s home in Kirklees.

Vincent’s general crime practice is centred on major cases in the areas of homicide, organised crime, terrorism, forgery and drug and human trafficking, including several trials involving Yardie, Triad, Turkish, Eastern European and Slavic gangs. He has defended in many notorious homicides, including the longest murder trial ever heard at the Old Bailey – the kidnap and murder of television personality Mark Levy, whose body has never been found – and the so-called ‘beauty in the bath’ murder trial of John Taft which had thrown up in excess of 250 male suspects.

Drugs crimes have formed a significant element of his practice over the years, with highlights including trials following the largest yet recorded seizure of cocaine in the UK, and the cracking of the largest wholesale distribution network in South Wales.

Other highlights include acting for the main defendant in the trial arising from the largest seizure of forged Spanish currency in the UK, representing one of the Afghan refugees charged with hijacking an airliner at Stansted Airport and defending Mehmet Karagozlu, one of the main defendants charged with a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice by means of subverting a Customs & Excise investigation into mobile phone VAT fraud by destroying primary evidence and corrupting Custom’s data files.

Vincent is a Senior Advocacy Trainer at Middle Temple, and a door tenant at the Chambers of Peter Joyce QC, 1 High Pavement, Nottingham. He has in the past advised national newspapers on media law, written for the Times, the Evening Standard and was the author of a bi-monthly legal affairs column for the Sunday Correspondent. He retains a close interest in Media Law and Freedom of Expression.

Vincent has been a successful applicant for a number of firms of solicitors both in London and nationally as a panel lead advocate under the VHCC scheme. His hard work, versatility, commitment and thoroughness have also led to his appearance on the D.C.A. list of highest earning legal aid barristers.