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Kent accounting firm claims Lunn clients

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16th May 2016
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The rights to the client database of jailed accountant Christopher Lunn have been sold to a Kent accounting firm.

Lunn was sentenced to five years in prison earlier this year for evading £6m in tax. Lunn drew the attention of HMRC in 2011 after it was discovered his clients had higher than average refund claims. Lunn argued that this was to be expected as he specialised in the media industry.

The conviction left Lunn’s clients – some prominent media personalities – in limbo. The tax authority has investigated every single Christopher Lunn & Co client, an endeavour codenamed ‘Operation Edgewood’.

Last week’s sale will bring some welcome relief, however. The Tunbridge Wells firm Ward Mackenzie Chartered Accountants has swooped in to salvage the former practice.

Lunn reassured his clients throughout the whole drama that the case would be resolved. Many clients ignored Lunn’s tenuous guarantees and approached HMRC at an early stage, receiving a smaller penalty of 10% or lower.

The clients that tarried as a result of Lunn’s assurances face severe penalties from the taxman. The good news for these clients is that a single firm will now liaise with HMRC on their behalf.

AccountingWEB member and columnist Norman Younger of practice brokers Maximiti negotiated the sale with the administrators Frost Group. According to Younger, it was a “highly unusual and complex deal whose circumstances adversely impacted its marketability, and we had to bear in mind that with the passage of time the risk of clients finding a new adviser increased, thereby wiping out value for creditors”.

Younger added that a deal of this kind is a rare event. “This country boasts a robust and well-regulated profession that can be relied upon to assist clients with compliance and fulfilling the role as trusted business adviser.” 

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By chatman
17th May 2016 13:46

How disappointing. When I first read that I thought it said "Kent accountant's firm claims Lunn clients". As an avid reader of his contributions to AWeb, I was very pleased for him.

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Replying to chatman:
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By JessicaRain
28th May 2016 19:33

That will be lost on some but I think Kent Accountant will get it :)

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