Two company directors linked to a £100m Ponzi scheme have had their latest human rights appeal rejected by England’s Privy Council, which acts as Guernsey’s highest court of appeal.
Robin Fuller and Adam Tattersall had challenged the fairness of the process which led to them being sanctioned by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission, arguing that their rights under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights had been breached.
The pair were both directors of companies connected to the Providence Group, which collapsed in 2016 after operating an international fraud that cost investors more than £100m worldwide – and about £40m in the Channel Islands.
They claimed Guernsey’s courts had not properly reassessed the GFSC’s decisions, that there was apparent bias in the decision-making process, and that the length of time taken to deliver judgment was excessive.
The GFSC found both men had failed to meet the standards required of a “fit and proper person” to hold regulated roles, with Mr Tattersall’s conduct described as “very serious”.
Unfair delay
Sanctions imposed included fines, prohibition orders, and public statements.
Their case has passed through multiple courts in Guernsey over several years.
In 2025, the Court of Appeal ruled that a delay of more than two years in delivering the Royal Court’s judgment breached their right to a hearing within a reasonable time.
However, it rejected other challenges to the GFSC’s regulatory regime.
The latest ruling by the Privy Council dismissed the pair’s final appeal on those remaining human rights grounds, bringing an end to that aspect of the long-running case.
The decision leaves in place the Court of Appeal’s earlier finding on delay, but rejects arguments that there were wider breaches of the pair’s right to a fair hearing.