CV fraudster ordered to pay back portion of wages
22 August 2022
The Supreme Court has issued a judgement for R v Andrewes, a case of CV fraud, for which Andrewes pleaded guilty in 2017.
Andrewes successfully applied for a job as CEO at St Margaret’s Hospital, making the false claims that he had university degrees and significant past experience. He also later made the untrue claim that he obtained a PHD. The employment started in December 2004 and went until March 2015.
The Crown Court ordered for the full amount of net earnings to be reclaimed by the employers. However, the Court of Appeal found that no confiscation order should be made.
The judgement concludes that a confiscation order is to be upheld for wages earned in the position, but not on a “take all” basis. The Supreme Court seeks to confiscate the difference between the higher amount made through fraud and a lower amount that would be expected if no fraud had occurred. The proportional response avoids “double confiscation” for service rendered, while reclaiming “profit” made through false claims.
This amounted to around £97,000 to be repaid, rather than around £643,000 had a full confiscation order been upheld.
The press summary provided by the court states:
“This is to adopt a principled “middle way” in contrast to either a “take all” approach (as advocated by the Crown) or a “take nothing” approach (as adopted by the Court of Appeal).”
While such situations are rare, this judgement may open the door for employers to take further action against employees found to be engaging in CV fraud.
Information provided in this news article may be subject to change. Please make note of the date of publication to ensure that you are viewing up to date information.