Related provisions for EG 5.4.3
1 - 20 of 34 items.
(1) 1A person subject to enforcement action may
agree to a financial penalty or other outcome rather than contest formal action
by the FCA.44(2) The fact that he does so will not
usually obviate the need for a statutory notice recording the FCA's4 decision to take that action. Where, however, the person subject to enforcement action agrees
not to contest the content of a proposed statutory
notice, the decision to give that statutory notice will be taken
by senior FCA4 staff.44(3)
Settlement discussions may take
place at any time during the enforcement process if both parties agree. This
might be before the giving of a warning notice,
before a decision notice, or
even after referral of the matter to the Tribunal.
But the FCA4 would
not normally agree to detailed settlement discussions until it has a sufficient
understanding of the nature and gravity of the suspected misconduct or issue
to make a reasonable assessment of the appropriate outcome. Settlement
(1) The settlement decision makers may, but need not, participate in the discussions
exploring possible settlement.(2) If the settlement decision makers have not been involved in the discussions, but
an agreement has been reached, they may ask to meet the relevant FCA4 staff or the person concerned
in order to assist in the consideration of the proposed settlement.4
The terms of any proposed settlement:(1) will be put in writing and be agreed
by FCA4 staff
and the person concerned;4(2) may refer to a draft of the proposed statutory notices setting out the facts
of the matter and the FCA's4 conclusions; 4(3) may, depending upon the stage in
the enforcement process at which agreement is reached, include an agreement
by the person concerned to: (a) waive and not exercise any rights
under sections 387 (Warning notices) and 394 (Access to Authority
(1) Where the settlement decision makers decline to issue a statutory
notice despite the proposed settlement, they may invite FCA4 staff
and the person concerned to
enter into further discussions to try to achieve an outcome the settlement decision makers would be prepared
to endorse.4(2) However, if the proposed action
by the FCA4 has
been submitted to the RDC for
consideration, it will be for the RDC to
decide:4(a) whether to extend the period for
representations in response
(1) DEPP 2.4 sets out the FCA's4 approach
to giving third parties copies of statutory
notices pursuant to section 393 (Third party rights) of the Act.4(2) The decision to give a warning notice or a decision
notice to a third party is a statutory
notice associated decision.(3) In cases therefore where the decision
to give a warning notice or decision notice is taken by settlement decision makers, those decision
makers will decide whether a copy of the notice should be given to
Persons subject to enforcement action may be prepared to agree the amount of any financial penalty, or the length of any period of suspension, restriction, condition or limitation (see DEPP 6A)4, and other conditions which the FCA seeks to impose by way of such action. These4 conditions might include, for example, the amount or mechanism for the payment of compensation to consumers. The FCA recognises the benefits of such agreements, as4 they offer the potential for securing earlier
- (1)
The FCA3 has identified four stages of an action for these purposes:
3- (a)
the period from commencement of an investigation until the FCA3 has:
3 - (b)
the period from the end of stage 1 until the expiry of the period for making written representations or, if sooner, the date on which the written representations are sent in response to the giving of a warning notice ("stage 2");
- (c)
the period from the end of stage 2 until the giving of a decision notice ("stage 3");
- (d)
the period after the end of stage 3, including proceedings before the Tribunal and any subsequent appeals ("stage 4").
- (a)
- (2)
The communication of the FCA's3 assessment of the appropriate penalty for the purposes of DEPP 6.7.3G (1)(a) need not be in a prescribed form but will include an indication of the breaches alleged by the FCA3. It may include the provision of a draft warning notice.
33 - (3)
The reductions in penalty will be as follows:
Stage at which agreement reached
Percentage reduction
Stage 1
30
Stage 2
20
Stage 3
10
Stage 4
0
(1) Any settlement agreement between the FCA3 and the person concerned will therefore need to include a statement as to the appropriate penalty discount in accordance with this procedure.3(2) In certain circumstances the person concerned may consider that it would have been possible to reach a settlement at an earlier stage in the action, and argue that it should be entitled to a greater percentage reduction in penalty than is suggested by the table at DEPP 6.7.3G (3). It may
2The settlement discount scheme which applies to the amount of a financial penalty, described in DEPP 6.7.2 G to DEPP 6.7.5 G, also applies to the length of the period of a suspension, restriction or condition4, having regard to the FCA's3 statement of policy as set out in DEPP 6A.3. The settlement discount scheme does not apply to the length of the period for which approvals under section 59 of the Act have effect as a result of a limitation, as different considerations apply
1The FCA resolves many enforcement cases by settlement. Early settlement has many potential advantages as it can result, for example, in consumers obtaining compensation earlier than would otherwise be the case, the saving of FCA and industry resources, messages getting out to the market sooner and a public perception of timely and effective action. The FCA therefore considers it is in the public interest for matters to settle, and settle early, if possible.
1The possibility of settlement does not, however, change the fact that enforcement action is one of the tools available to the FCA to secure our statutory objectives. The FCA seeks to change the behaviour not only of those subject to the immediate action, but also of others who will be alerted to our concerns in a particular area. There is no distinction here between action taken following agreement with the subject of the enforcement action and action resisted by a firm before
1Settlements in the FCA context are not the same as ‘out of court’ settlements in the commercial context. An FCA settlement is a regulatory decision, taken by the FCA, the terms of which are accepted by the firm or individual concerned. So, when agreeing the terms of a settlement, the FCA will carefully consider its statutory objectives and other relevant matters such as the importance of sending clear, consistent messages through enforcement action, and will only settle in appropriate
1In recognition of the value of early settlement, the FCA operates a scheme to award explicit discounts for early settlement of cases involving financial penalties. Details of the scheme, which applies only to settlement of cases where investigators were appointed on or after 20 October 2005, are set out in DEPP 6.7. This chapter provides some commentary on certain practical aspects of the operation of the scheme.
1Decisions on settlements and statutory notices arising from them are taken by two members of the FCA's senior management, rather than by the RDC (DEPP refers to these individuals as the 'settlement decision makers'). Full details of the special decision making arrangements for settlements are set out in DEPP 5.
1Enforcement cases often involve multiple parties, for example a firm and individuals in the firm. Enforcement action may be appropriate against just the firm, just the individuals or both. In some cases, it will not be possible to reach an acceptable settlement unless all parties are able to reach agreement.
1Even where action is not taken against connected parties, these parties may have what the Act calls ‘third party rights’. Broadly, if any of the reasons contained in a warning notice or decision notice identifies a person (the third party) other than the person to whom the notice is given, and in the opinion of the FCA is prejudicial to the third party, a copy of the notice must be given to the third party unless that person receives a separate warning notice or decision notice
1Decisions recorded in FCAfinal notices or supervisory notices will be taken into account in any subsequent case if the later case raises the same or similar issues to those considered by the FCA when it reached its earlier decision. Not to do so would expose the FCA to accusations of arbitrary and inconsistent decision-making. The need to look at earlier cases applies irrespective of whether the decisions were reached following settlement or consideration by the RDC or the Tribunal.
1The FCA recognises the importance of consistency in its decision-making and that it must consider the approach previously taken to, say, the application of a particular rule or Principle in a given context. This applies equally to consideration by the RDC or by the settlement decision makers when they look at action taken by the FCA in earlier, similar, cases. This is not to say that the FCA cannot take a different view to that taken in the earlier case: the facts of two enforcement
1As described above, the FCA operates special decision-making arrangements under which members of FCA senior management take decisions on FCA settlements. This means that settlement discussions will take place without involving the RDC. The FCA would expect to hold any settlement discussions on the basis that neither FCA staff nor the person concerned would seek to rely against the other on any admissions or statements made if the matter is considered subsequently by the RDC or
1If the settlement negotiations result in a proposed settlement of the dispute, FCA staff will put the terms of the proposed settlement in writing and agree them with the person concerned. The settlement decision makers will then consider the settlement under the procedures set out in DEPP 5. A settlement is also likely to result in the giving of statutory notices (see paragraphs 2.15.1 to 2.15.3).
Decisions on whether to give a statutory notice will be taken by a 'decision
maker'. The FCA's2 assessment
of who is the appropriate decision maker is subject to the requirements of
section 395 of the Act and will
depend upon the nature of the decision, including its complexity, importance
and urgency. References to the 'decision maker' in DEPP are
to:2(1) the Regulatory
Decisions Committee (RDC);
or(2) FCA2 staff
under executive procedures;
or2(3) FCA2 staff
under the settlement
DEPP 2 to DEPP 5 set out:(1) which decisions require the giving
of statutory notices and who takes them (DEPP 2);(2) the nature and procedures of the RDC (DEPP 3);(3) the procedure for decision making
by FCA2 staff
under executive procedures (DEPP 4);2(4) the procedure for decision making
by FCA2 staff
under the settlement decision procedure (DEPP 5).2
23One of the reasons for introducing the guidance in this appendix is to seek a reduction in the number of complaints which are referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service. If a firm writes to the complainant proposing terms for settlement which are in accordance with this appendix, the letter may include a statement that the calculation of loss and redress accords with the FCAguidance, but should not imply that this extends to the assessment of whether or not the complaint should
1Before a case is referred to the RDC, it will be subject to a legal review by a lawyer who has not been a part of the investigation team. This will help to ensure that there is consistency in the way in which our cases are put and that they are supported by sufficient evidence. A lawyer who has not been a part of the investigation team will also review warning notices before they are submitted to the settlement decision makers.
1The FCA is committed to mediating appropriate cases; mediation and the involvement of a neutral mediator may help the FCA to reach an agreement with the person subject to enforcement action in circumstances where settlement might not otherwise be achieved or may not be achieved so efficiently and effectively.
1The procedures the FCA will follow when giving supervisory notices, warning notices and decision notices are set out in DEPP 1 to 5. Under these procedures, the decisions to issue such notices in contested enforcement cases are generally taken by the RDC, an FCA Board committee that is appointed by, and accountable to, the FCA Board for its decisions generally. Further details about the RDC can be found in DEPP 3 and on the pages of the FCA web site relating to the RDC. However,
(1) The purposes of this chapter are:(a) to remind firms of the provisions of PIDA; and(b) to encourage firms to consider adopting and communicating to workers appropriate internal procedures for handling workers' concerns as part of an effective risk management system.(2) In this chapter "worker" includes, but is not limited to, an individual who has entered into a contract of employment.
The chairman of the relevant meeting will ensure that the meeting is conducted so as to enable:(1) the recipient of the warning notice or first supervisory notice to make representations;(2) the relevant FCA1 staff to respond to those representations;1(3) the RDC members to raise with those present any points or questions about the matter (whether in response to particular representations or more generally about the matter); and(4) the recipient of the notice to respond to points
Prior to the conclusion of an initial contract of insurance and, if necessary, on its amendment or renewal, a firm must provide the customer with at least:(1) its name and address;(2) the fact that it is included in the Financial Services Register and the means for verifying this;(3) whether it has a direct or indirect holding representing more than 10% of the voting rights or capital in a given insurance undertaking (that is not a pure reinsurer);(4) whether a given insurance
(1) A person performs the EEA branch senior manager function in relation to the branch in the United Kingdom of an EEA relevant authorised person if that person has significant responsibility for one or more significant business units of the branch that carry on any of the activities listed in (2).(2) The activities listed in this paragraph are:(a) designated investment business other than dealing in investments as principal, disregarding article 15 of the Regulated Activities
1As with cases under the Act, the FCA may settle or mediate appropriate cases involving civil breaches of the Money Laundering Regulations to assist it to exercise its functions under the Regulations in the most efficient and economic way. The settlement discount scheme set out in DEPP 6.7 applies to penalties imposed under the Money Laundering Regulations.