City lawyer is jailed for fraud
A CITY lawyer was sentenced to three years in prison yesterday, after admitting four counts of expenses fraud against his former employer.
Christopher Grierson, a former litigation partner at Hogan Lovells, claimed £1.27m in travel expenses from the firm over four years before the fraud – described as “sophisticated” – was uncovered in 2011.
QEB Hollis Whiteman, acting for Grierson, told the court his client’s actions were driven by his bipolar illness, and that he stole from the firm to cover up excessive spending in his private life.
Judge John Price, who told Grierson in March that a prison sentence was “inevitable” said yesterday that the lawyer’s deception was “well-planned and sophisticated” and constituted a “serious breach of trust” against his former employer.
The judge also said Grierson’s mental illness and early plea formed an “extremely impressive”mitigation. He will serve half the sentence.