QC appointed executive counsel at accounting watchdog
Gareth Rees QC, an expert in financial crime and regulation, will start new role at Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board in March
GARETH REES QC has been appointed executive counsel to the Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board (AADB), the disciplinary body for accountants in the UK.
Rees, who specialises in financial and commercial crime and regulation, will start at the AADB – part of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) – on 12 March. He takes over from Tom Martin.
FRC chief executive Stephen Haddrill, said that Rees had “extensive” regulatory and disciplinary experience in both prosecution and defence, and had a thorough understanding of the Accounting and Actuarial Discipline Board.
The AADB recently said that it intends to get tougher on accountants who are found guilty of misconduct.
In January the AADB fined PwC a record £1.4m for failing to spot in its audit of JP Morgan Securities Limited that billions of dollars of client money had not been properly ringfenced.
Tom Martin, AADB executive counsel, told Accountancy Age in January that he he hoped to start a consultation, which could see larger fines imposed on accountancy firms.