Michael Hayton KC

Notable Cases

• R v PG - Manchester Crown Court at Minshull Street.

  Crime

  Michael Hayton KC, leading Virginia Hayton, secured an acquittal in a money laundering case involving the exporting of cash to the Middle East by secreting currency in freight being flown out of Manchester Airport. The case, investigated by the National Crime Agency, allegedly involved potentially more than £20 million and the evidence spread across three continents.

• R v BV Limited - Manchester Crown Court

  Crime

  Michael Hayton KC has been instructed to represent a firm of accountants charged under Section 45 of the Criminal Finances Act 2017. This is the first prosecution under this section of the legislation and alleges a failure to prevent the facilitation of UK tax evasion offences. The case, which will proceed to a contested trial, involves alleged fraudulent claims in excess of £16 million of Research and Development Tax Credits and Covid era Bounce Back loans.

• Inquest into the death of Ben Loenard

  Inquest

  A 6 week inquest into the death of a young boy scout (Ben Loenard) on Great Orme in North Wales. Represented the County Commissioner, a senior volunteer in the area.

  Case received widespread national media attention.

• Re: Veolia Uk Ltd

  Inquest

  Represented a multi-billion pound company following fatalities during the demolition of a North Sea oil rig.

  A 9 day inquest

• GMC v Dr Bawa Garba

  Professional Discipline

  Represented the Doctor in her review hearing. Dr Bawa Garba had been convicted of gross negligence manslaughter of a 6 year old boy in her care at a Leicester hospital. Following her conviction a Fitness to Practice panel determined that she should be suspended from practice, but on appeal by the GMC this was replaced with erasure. The case was then further appealed to the Court of Appeal including the Lord Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls and erasure was replaced with suspension.

  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/ne...

• GMC v Mr BQ

  Professional Discipline

  Defending prominent eye surgeon and developer of intra ocular lenses who is being investigated for allegedly dishonestly recommending and carrying out surgery on 24 patients in his care at the Harley Street London Eye Hospital. The case is listed for 10 weeks.

  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/he...

• R v AT

  Crime

  Defended the first defendant in back to back trials involving abuse of young children in a local care home in the 1970s onwards. The Defendant was a carer at the home and had been previously convicted of sexual and physical abuse at the home, which was adduced at these trials. The Defendant was acquitted of multiple rapes and out of more than twenty counts on the indictments was eventually convicted of two child cruelty charges against one complainant which amounted to two common assaults.

  Wisteria Lodge: Seven men deny child cruelty

• R v JSG

  Crime

  Defended a retired police officer for the murder of his elderly mother. The case involved uncontested pathology evidence as to the method of killing being asphyxiation by smothering.

  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-46521909

• R v AT

  Crime

  Successfully defended care worker accused of rape and sexual assault upon children in the 1980s and 1990s at a care home in the Midlands. Three week trial concluded with acquittals on all counts.

• R v Derrick Cooper and others

  Crime

  Part of Operation Hydrant, a nationwide investigation into abuse by persons of prominence or at institutions by teaching staff. Acting for the prosecution involving historic abuse by teachers at a school for boys with social and welfare issues in the 1970s and 1980s. The case involved a 2 month trial in Carlisle Crown Court after which the Principal and Owner of school was convicted of an offence of assault and another of child cruelty. He awaits sentence.

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-43431073

• R v Vicnenzo Tavano

  Crime - (Murder)

  MH was instructed as leading counsel for the Crown in the prosecution of Vincenzo Tavano. Mr Tavano is charged with the murder of Giuseppi Roncari, a well known local Italian restauranteur and businessman. Mr Roncari was found dead in his Salford flat in April 2017. He had been strangled and had a plastic bag tied over his head. Mr Roncari’s property had been searched and credit cards and his Jaguar car had been stolen.

  uk-england-manchester-39709156

• R v Mark Buckley

  Crime - (Murder)

  MH was instructed as leading counsel for the defence in the murder trial of Mark Buckley. Mr Buckley is alleged to have killed Ellen Higginbottom, an 18 year old A level student. The body of Ms Higginbottom was found in the Orrell Water Park, near Wigan.

  Man-woman-arrested-killing-Ellen-Higginbottom.html

• R v Hurst

  Crime - (Murder)

  Michael Hayton QC begins on 10 July 2017 a two week murder trial for the prosecution. The Defendant is charged with the Murder of Matthew McKenzie in Heywood in January 2017. Mr McKenzie’s body was found in an alleyway close to midnight by a local man walking his dog. He was stabbed multiple times including the fatal wound to the heart.

  http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/man-charged-murder-after-matthew-12465005

• R v Devonta Neish and others

  Crime

  Gangland murder in Moss Side Manchester. 8 week trial involving multiple defendants.

  http://www.itv.com/news/granad...

• HSE v Essar Oil Limited

  Represented Essar Oil Limited before Davis J in the Liverpool Crown Court when the company was fined £1,650,000 for an offence contrary to the COMAH Regulations 1999. The prosecution arose from an explosion that took place at the Stanlow Oil Refinery at Ellesmere Port in November 2013.No injuries were sustained by any person but it was accepted that the risk of harm was high, and that a fatality could have resulted.

  The refinery is the second largest in the UK and provides one in every 6 litres of petrol purchased nationwide as well as being an amor manufacturer of diesel and aircraft fuels. The refinery is COMAH(Control of Major Accident Hazards) site and the company has a turnover for the site of approximately £5 billion.

  Whilst Essar acknowledged their guilt at an early stage there were protracted negotiations over many months regarding disputes between experts as to the level of culpability to be ascribed to the company for its failings. Further, the prosecution sought to bring the company within the “Very Large Company” section of the Sentencing Council DefinitiveGuidelines, which would potentially have attracted a sentence outside the£10,000,000 maximum envisaged within the guideline table covering “Large”companies. Expert accountancy evidence was relied upon by the defence insupport of submissions as to proportionality.

  Ultimately, following written and oral submissions, the case was dealt with on the basis of Harm Category 1, which was always conceded, and medium culpability with some aggravating features and was sentenced well within the range set down for “Large” companies.

• Inquest re Cristal Pigment UK Ltd

  Inquest

  Complex issues of scientific nature dealt with following a major explosion in a chemical plant on Humberside.

  River Humber closed to shipping following a leak of a chemical cloud of titanium tetra chloride.

  http://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/

• Inquest touching upon the death of PC William Barker.

  Inquest

  Death of a police constable in the execution of his duties during the Cumbria floods in Cockermouth. National publicity and attention.

• Inquest touching upon the death of David Donohoe

  Inquest

  Substantial inquest lasting several weeks into death of man who had been prescribed pain killing tablets from which he subsequently overdosed. Involved issues as to scope of inquest. Reported at R (on the application of Sreedharan) v HM Coroner for the County of Greater Manchester and others [2013] EWCA Civ 181

• Inquest touching upon the death of Christopher Heaton

  Inquest

  Two week inquest involving complicated and convoluted expert evidence in construction industry context.

• Inquest touching upon the death of David Astley

  Inquest

  Death in Custody case.

• R -v- Chargot Limited

  Health and Safety

  UKHL 73 Defence trial counsel for Ruttle Contracting one of two companies prosecuted for fatality at work. Advised upon appeal. Now a leading case.

• R -v- Frederick Jones

  Health and Safety

  Defence Junior. Double manslaughter case involving Legionnaires disease contracted from the Copthorne Hotel, Cardiff

• R -v- Swindell (David)

  Health and Safety

  [2008] EWCA Crim 3277 Defence counsel in 3 week fatality prosecution. Brown verdicts.

• HSE -v- PC Richardson

  Health and Safety

  Defence counsel in fall from height at Sellafield whilst dismantling irradiated chimney stack from the 1957 “Windscale Fire”; Britain’s biggest nuclear disaster.

• HSE -v- Unichem PLC (Boots Chemists)

  Health and Safety

  Defence counsel for company in prosecution relating to fall from height resulting in fatal accident at place of employment.

• HSE -v- James Thompson

  Health and Safety

  Defence counsel for company in prosecution relating to a fatal accident at place of employment.

• Oldham MBC -v- Travis Perkins

  Health and Safety

  Defence counsel in Crown Court prosecution for accident at work involving significant crushing injuries.

• HSE -v- E W Cartons

  Health and Safety

  Defence counsel for company in prosecution relating to a fatal accident at place of employment.

• R -v- Graham (George Robertson)

  Health and Safety

  [2009] EWCA Crime 2846 HSE prosecution; Howe examined regarding level of fine.

• GMC vs Dr Wendy Chapman

  Professional Discipline

  Acted on behalf of the General Medical Council against the Harlequins RFC "Bloodgate Scandal" doctor.

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london11055639

• Re: Dr O

  Professional Discipline

  Instructed to represent the interests of medical professionals in the Inquiry into Hyponatraemia Related Deaths in Northern Ireland. (http://www.ihrdni.org). The Inquiry is examining the deaths of a number of children and the treatment that they received whilst in hospital.

• R -v- Benjamin Wilson

  Firearms

  (Central Criminal Court) Defence Junior. Two month trial involving the running of machine guns and other firearms to sectarian groups in Ireland

• R -v- Mu Yong Lin

  Crime

  Defence Junior. Morecambe Bay cockle pickers. Seven month trial alleging manslaughter of 21 Chinese cockle pickers. This case led to the introduction of the Gangmaster (Licensing) Act 2004. Junior counsel for one of the Chinese gangmasters

• R - v - Jamie Watson

  Manslaughter

  Defence Junior. Secured acquittal for manslaughter. Mob attack home of paedophile in revenge attack and deceased died following fall from balcony as he attempted to escape.

• R - v - Hugh McMahon

  Murder

  Defence Junior. Defendant acquitted of murder following drug related knife attack.

• R -v- Leanne Potter

  Murder

  Defence Junior for first defendant acquitted of murder. Victim died 4 months after alleged assault.

• R -v- Raymond Hughes

  Murder

  Defence Junior for first defendant in revenge murder of alleged police informant.

• R -v- Paul Culshaw

  Murder

  Defence Junior. Full life sentence for murder of Lancaster prostitute.

• R -v- David Burns

  Murder

  Defence Junior. 16 year old defendant acquitted of murdering his brother-in-law on grounds of provocation.

• R -v- Richard Johnstone

  Murder

  Defence Junior. Joint street attack on victim who died some weeks later. Substantial medical causation issues of some complexity.

• R -v- Brendan Woods

  Murder

  Defence Junior. Defendant acquitted of murdering his brother in a knife attack on grounds of lack of intent.

• R -v- William McInnes

  Murder

  Prosecution Junior. “Body in the boot murder”. Defendant convicted of murdering his partner and leaving her body in the boot of a rental car in Blackpool where it was discovered some weeks later.

• R -v- Vladamir Brandejes

  Murder

  Defence Junior. Czech national who with a co-worker robbed and killed their employer before fleeing the country. Extradited back to UK.

• R -v- Ian Grant

  Murder

  Defendant strangled his wife in alleged steroid “rage” following argument.

• R -v- Luke Harvey

  Murder

  Defendant charged with murder of young traveller in an alleged revenge attack following theft of a motor cycle. Convicted of manslaughter.

• R -v- Shaun Jackson

  Murder

  Defence Junior. Defendant murdered his friend following drunken argument.

• R -v- Stephen Brown

  Murder

  Defendant killed his mother’s boyfriend who had made sexual advances to the Defendant’s partner. Medical causation issues. Defendant pleaded to manslaughter.

• R -v- Sajad Ali

  Murder

  Doorman killed drunken club goer.

• R -v- Pamela Tickle

  Fraud

  Leading defence junior in large scale NHS fraud in chain of optician shops, involving sums in excess of £1 million

• R -v- A K and others.

  Fraud

  Prosecution counsel in Major Crime Unit prosecution. Property fraud.

• R -v- Philip Johnson

  Fraud

  Junior counsel for leading defendant, a blind chartered accountant, in a large scale fraud and blackmail case.

• R -v- Chris Sanders

  Fraud

  Operation Emersed multi million pound MTIC fraud.

• R -v- Wallbank (Lindsay Sarah)

  Drug Conspiracy

  [2010] EWCA Crim 2172 Drug conspiracy involving undercover police officers.

• R -v- Edward Izzet

  Crime

  [2004] EWCA 586

• Chief Constable of Lancashire -v- Lisa Marie Potter

  Crime

  [2003] EWHC 2272 (Admin) One of the leading cases on Anti-Social Behaviour Orders

• R -v- John Dunlop

  Crime

  [2001] EWCA Crim 1808

• Attorney General of the Falkland Islands -v- Shaun May (Stanley)

  Death by Reckless Driving

  Defence Junior. Secured acquittal in the first prosecution in over 60 years for causing death by reckless driving on the Falkland Islands.

• Attorney General of the Falkland Islands -v- Colin MacDonald (Stanley)

  Sexual Offences

  Defence Junior in historic sex abuse.

• R-v- Paul Edensor

  Manslaughter

  Defended tram driver who was three times the speed limit when he hit and killed a pensioner on Blackpool promenade

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/news/uk-england-lancashire-11949563