Ian Whitehurst is a senior barrister with over 30 years’ experience practising in serious and organised crime, financial crime, confiscation and asset recovery, civil fraud, regulatory enforcement, and cyber-enabled offending. He is regularly instructed in high-value and complex matters involving organised crime groups, extreme violence, large-scale fraud, encrypted communications, digital assets, and parallel criminal, civil, and regulatory proceedings, frequently with international dimensions.

He is ranked in the leading legal directories for crime, fraud, confiscation and asset recovery, and regulatory law, and has been nominated for Criminal Junior of the Year at the Legal 500 Awards. He is currently completing postgraduate study at the University of Cambridge, where his research focuses on organised crime groups, cyber-enabled offending, offshore financial structures, and cross-border criminality, directly informing his advocacy and advisory work in international financial crime and asset recovery.

Ian holds a number of decision-making and advisory roles.

He is:

A Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb).

Listed as an arbitrator with international institutions including Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands.

A Legally Qualified Person advising police forces in Wales on disciplinary proceedings involving senior officers.

Regularly appointed in sports-disciplinary matters, including football and basketball.

He is increasingly consulted where criminal proceedings, civil fraud, offshore disputes, and digital assets intersect. He also undertakes advisory and training work for overseas institutions on financial crime and its links to terrorism.

Ian is appointed to the List of Counsel at the International Criminal Court and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and has rights of audience in multiple jurisdictions. His practice frequently involves cross-border criminality, offshore financial centres, and parallel proceedings across different legal systems.

He is currently undertaking postgraduate study at the University of Cambridge. His research examines offshore structures and transnational criminal networks and directly informs his work in international fraud, asset recovery, and regulatory enforcement.