The Supreme Court has ruled that people who lie about their qualifications or experience on their CV may have to pay back part of their wages.
Jon Andrewes - a former NHS Chief Executive - was jailed after lying about his university degrees and previous work experience led to him getting a hospice role, as well as other directorships.
In December 2004 Mr Andrewes was appointed as the CEO of St Margaret’s Hospice in Taunton, Somerset with a starting annual salary of £75,000. In 2006, he informed colleagues that he had obtained a PhD and wished to be referred to as Dr Andrewes.
During his employment, Andrewes also used the false information to gain an appointment as a Non-Executive Director at Torbay NHS Care Trust which was a compensated position.
Andrewes remained in the post of CEO of the hospice until March 2015 when the deception was discovered and he was dismissed.
In July 2015, he was appointed chair of the Royal Cornwall NHS Hospital Trust, but was dismissed from this position when the truth about his deception emerged.
Andrewes was prosecuted and in January 2017 pleaded guilty to one count of obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception under section 16 of the Theft Act 1968 (in regard to his position at St Margaret’s Hospice) and two counts of fraud under section 1 of the Fraud Act 2006 (his appointments at the Torbay NHS Care Trust and the Royal Cornwall NHS Hospital Trust).
In March of 2017 Andrewes was sentenced to two years imprisonment at Exeter Crown Court.
After his conviction, the Crown sought a confiscation order against him and eventually the Court of Appeal found in his favour, ruling that Andrewes should not have to pay back his earnings.
However, the Crown then appealed to the Supreme Court, citing the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Court of Appeal’s decision was overturned.
Lord Hodge and Lord Burrows stated that a total confiscation of wages would be disproportionate as Andrewes had performed a service but that the court should seek to confiscate the difference between the higher earnings obtained through fraud and the lower earnings that would have been obtained if the fraud had not occurred.
Andrewes was therefore ordered to pay £97,000 which they deemed the unlawful amount of the total of £643,602.91 he received during his employment.
Alexandra Mizzi - Legal Director at Howard Kennedy - said of the ruling:
“While prosecutions like this have previously been rare, with most employers opting for dismissal on the grounds of lying on a CV, this case could pave the way for employers taking greater action.”
