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Testimonial

  • “Harvey Knight is the doyen of the FS Contentious world.  He has an unparalleled record of acting for senior individuals and has achieved fantastic results for his clients” – Legal 500

  • “Harvey Knight is a stand-out lawyer in his field.  He gives practical, measured, and timely advice and is very good at coaching clients on how to handle difficult regulatory meetings to achieve the best outcome” – Legal 500

  • “He has an excellent reputation in this space” – Chambers & Partners

  • “He is a popular choice of practitioner for senior executives in the financial services industry.  His capabilities include exit counselling and internal investigations” – Chambers & Partners

E: hknight@mccarthydenning.com
T: +44 (0) 203 926 9900
M: +44 (0) 7535 975725

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Harvey Knight

Partner

Harvey is recognised in the Legal 500 Hall of Fame and by Chambers and Partners as a Leading Individual for contentious financial services, having worked intensively on contentious financial services matters, enforcement, and internal investigations for more than 30 years.

Harvey was a senior in-house lawyer with the FSA when it assumed its full statutory powers in December 2001 (N2) and he completed more than 6 years in-house with the FSA before returning to private practice in 2007.  He advises owner-managed firms, senior executives and boards on navigating complex regulatory frameworks, managing supervisory enquiries and interacting effectively with both domestic and international regulators.  Having been on both sides of the fence, and having specialised in financial services regulatory matters for more than 25 years, Harvey has a highly nuanced understanding of regulatory priorities, instincts and processes.

Harvey’s practice covers the full spectrum of regulatory work, including permissions and approvals (having advised the FSA Authorisations and Non-Routine Approvals teams), intense and enhanced supervision engagements, enforcement proceedings, crisis management and financial crime prevention. He regularly represents clients before bodies such as the Upper Tribunal, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), Serious Fraud Office (SFO), Takeover Panel and other civil and criminal enforcement agencies, as well as in High Court proceedings and overseas jurisdictions.

Across his career, Harvey has achieved landmark outcomes, including the first successful judicial review of the FCA establishing joint legal privilege in regulatory investigations, negotiated the first PRA settlement for a UK bank CEO, and secured the unprecedented overturning of an FCA ban on a senior banker for an alleged lack of integrity.

Harvey is recognised in leading legal directories for his technical strength, pragmatic approach and client focus. His work is frequently cited in Chambers UK and The Legal 500, where clients and peers commend his strategic insight and effectiveness in high-stakes regulatory disputes.

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