Ben Close
Year of Call: 2009
Telephone Clerk: +44 (0)121 246 0200
Clerks Email: [email protected]
Introduction
Ben has quickly accumulated considerable experience in most aspects of criminal law. He receives regular instructions for the
defence and prosecution in serious and complex cases, including being led on a number of occasions. As well as appearing
frequently in the Crown Court, he has also appeared successfully a number of times in the Court of Appeal. Ben enjoys all
aspects of criminal work, and he is also keen to encourage instructions in regulatory fields. He has been a successful Grade 3
prosecutor for several years, and he has been appointed to the CPS specialist rape panel.
He has earned a reputation for a hard-working and thorough approach, but without losing sight of the importance of being
personable and persuasive. He is equally at home addressing juries or judges.
After obtaining a First Class degree in Law, Ben completed an LLM in Criminal Justice before undertaking a pupillage in a
specialist crime set in 2009, commencing practice in 2010. He moved to St. Philips at the start of 2015.
Ben also assists with advocacy training events and lecturing Bar students.
Crime
In 2016, notable successes include: obtaining an acquittal for a defendant faced with an allegation of s.18 assault involving
injuries including broken limbs; obtaining an acquittal for a teacher facing sexual allegations made by a pupil; successfully
prosecuting a 7 defendant affray including one defendant who was represented by a senior silk; obtaining an acquittal for an
ex-soldier suffering from PTSD; and successfully prosecuting a multi-million pound cannabis production conspiracy.
Fraud, Business and Financial Crime
Ben has considerable experience of fraud cases including, most recently, frauds committed by company directors, courier
frauds, VAT fraud, identity thefts, benefit frauds, and frauds in breach of trust more generally. The latter includes cases where
there have been overlapping attempts to pervert the administration of justice.
Ben was junior for the first defendant in a high-profile case of private detectives illegally obtaining private data. The case
involved complex issues in relation to disclosure, and the overlap between offences contrary to the Fraud Act 2006 and the
Data Protection Act 1998. The case took on increased significance following the Leveson Inquiry.
In 2016 he successfully prosecuted a 9 defendant courier fraud case. His experience of prosecuting multi-defendant cases
also extends to a 17 defendant case, again without a leader.
Ben has extensive experience of benefit fraud cases. As well as appearing for the defence and prosecution in benefit claimant
cases, he has also successfully prosecuted larger conspiracies. That work has often been high-profile, for example, cases
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Ben Close
0121 246 7000
involving a local politician and a defendant who received disability benefits whilst working as a stage-actor.
As part of his fraud practice, Ben has amassed considerable experience of confiscation hearings. Recently he was a junior in a
case where more than £2m was confiscated as a result of drugs offences (benefit figures were between £16 and £17million).
In another case, having successfully prosecuted a case in which money was laundered through the accounts of a company
purporting to act as a middle-man in the purchase and sale of iPhones, he secured the confiscation of £250,000.
He has been successful in several hearings involving the determination of ownership of assets in accordance with the
changes introduced by the Serious Crime Act 2015, for example, one case litigated over a number of days and involving
multiple defendants from the same family as well as a third party, resulted in the successful confiscation of more than half a
million pounds worth of property.
His experience also extends to restraint and enforcement hearings, encompassing legal argument in those fields and
appearing in a related multi-track trial in the County Court, again on the issue of ownership of property.
In 2016 he successfully appeared for the Crown in R v. Malhi [2016] EWCA Crim 2025.
Organised Crime and Terrorism
Ben was the junior for the prosecution in what was described as the largest ever cannabis case ever in the UK. The case
involved the prosecution of those at the head of a criminal organisation responsible for the production of cannabis across the
country including the use of silk road.
He has appeared for numerous defendants facing serious drugs allegations.
Ben successfully prosecuted a significant trial involving the use of a shotgun to rob a jewellery shop. Both defendants were
convicted resulting in combined sentences of 28 years.
He also successfully prosecuted a gang for armed robbery and car-key burglaries. The first defendant was represented by a
silk.
Ben has appeared in numerous cases involving firearms including recently obtaining a Community Order on behalf of a
defendant found in possession of live ammunition.
He also has experience of successfully opposing SCPOs.
Serious Sexual Offences
Ben has represented numerous defendants in cases involving a broad range of sexual offences including successfully acting in
rape cases and cases involving historic allegations.
In 2016, acquittals have included a teacher accused of assaulting a student and a nurse accused of assaulting a patient.
Ben was the junior for the defence in a case where the defendant was charged with sexual offences against 13 victims, male
and female and adults and children, over three decades, a case with complex issues around disclosure and bad character
(mixed verdicts following a lengthy trial).
Other notable successes include defending a schoolboy alleged have assaulted a younger classmate.
He is a specialist advocate on the CPS rape panel.
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Ben Close
0121 246 7000
Motoring and Road Traffic
Ben has acted and advised in a full range of road traffic matters including cases involving allegations of dangerous driving
resulting death and serious injury. In one recent case where dangerous driving causing serious injury was alleged, he
successfully acted for a bus driver where the prosecution ultimately accepted a guilty plea to careless driving avoiding the loss
of his driving license and employment and resulting in an absolute discharge and a finding of special reasons.
Ben played a leading role in defence submissions which were accepted by the Court of Appeal in the case of R v. Needham
[2016[ EWCA Crim 455, providing guidance on sections 35A and B of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988.
He has experience of calling expert witnesses, in one such case successfully arguing that a defendant’s ability to drive was not
impaired notwithstanding (accepted) use of illicit drugs.
In the Magistrates’ Court his work has encompassed document offences, mounting successful arguments in relation to
‘exceptional hardship’ and ‘special reasons’, and successful procedural arguments concerning the taking of samples.
Regulatory
Ben has prosecuted and defended in an increasingly broad range of regulatory matters.
He has represented individuals and companies at inquests. He also has experience of cases where companies and directors
are being prosecuted, including the prosecution of multiple defendant cases in a commercial context.
Ben has successfully acted in licensing cases on appeal to both the Magistrates’ and Crown Courts. He also has experience in
other fields of local governance, for example, fly-tipping cases.
He has acted as an instructor on witness familiarisation courses for HSE inspectors involving the cross-examination of HSE
experts and investigators.
Ben’s criminal practice has always had an emphasis on fraud and confiscation/forfeiture including private prosecutions, all of
which lends itself well to work in regulatory fields. More generally, he is an experienced and successful trial advocate.
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Ben Close
0121 246 7000