Mike Rainford and trading standards
Who? Mike Rainford, 52, partner and head of business crime at Manchester firm Burton Copeland.
Why is he in the news? He defended kitchen retailer, Vance Miller, 44, of Maple Hill, Oldham following raids on his business premises and home by 130 police and trading standards officers in November 2006.
Investigators removed equipment and 270,000 pages of paperwork, and also interviewed more than 3,000 of Miller’s customers.
Miller was subsequently accused of conspiracy to defraud and of offences under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968, the central allegation being he falsely claimed the kitchens he sold were made of real or solid wood when they were not.
Judge Jonathan Foster QC, however, sitting at Manchester Crown Court on 12 January 2010, acquitted Miller of all charges, saying the investigation was ‘misconceived from the start’. There was no case to answer on the counts of conspiracy and the Trade Descriptions Act allegations were quashed as out of time.
Thoughts on the case: ‘We were frustrated by the intransigence of the prosecution because a compromise we had proposed could have settled the dispute long before the court case even started. It was sheer doggedness that enabled us to carry on and win this overwhelming victory after more than three years. We now plan to set up a dedicated trading standards unit to combat any further actions like this.’
Dealing with the media: ‘The biggest challenge was getting the media to see Mr Miller as victim rather than a gangster.’
Why become a lawyer? ‘I was a 15-year-old at college when a criminal lawyer came to give us a careers talk. He was so impressive I thought: That’s the job for me.’
Career highlight to date? ‘Winning my first case before a judge as opposed to magistrates. Counsel for the other side is now a senior silk.’
Career low-point to date? ‘I was summoned in the middle of the night to try and coax a client from the gas-filled flat he was threatening to blow up. I got him out, to rapturous applause, but later in the police van he told me the only reason he didn’t blow us to pieces was he had no matches.’
