Tessa Lorimer joins Withers as Special Counsel to strengthen its tax litigation team

Withers London has hired Tessa Lorimer to strengthen its tax disputes and investigation practice. She joins as Special Counsel.

Tessa is a barrister who specialises in both civil and criminal tax fraud investigations and litigation conducted by the Special Investigation and Criminal Investigation departments of HMRC. Tessa has extensive experience in advising the Board of the former Inland Revenue and HMRC in relation to their most complex direct and indirect tax investigations and prosecutions.

Most of Tessa’s work is international in nature and she has considerable experience of mutual legal assistance, extradition, search warrants, judicial review, injunctions, SOCPA production orders and legal professional privilege issues. Tessa has also advised SOCA, HMRC and the SCDEA on sensitive cases involving money laundering and organised crime as well as strategic export control and regulatory offences.

Tessa comments, “Withers has a first-class reputation for assisting clients in regulatory investigations and the international reach of the team is a great platform for me to build my practice around the world. I look forward to putting my experience of working within and across from the tax authorities into effect at Withers.”

Tessa started her career with the CPS and spent 12 years as a Senior Lawyer based in the Thames Vallet. In 2001 she joined the Inland Revenue Solicitor’s Office and spent 4 years as a senior tax lawyer. In 2005 she moved across to the Revenue & Customs Prosecutions Office as a senior tax fraud prosecutor before returning to the CPS in a similar role. In 2012 she moved into practice and worked as a barrister with GSC Solicitors in London.