David Mills (lawyer)
Encyclopedia
David Mackenzie Mills is a British corporate lawyer who specialises in international work for Italian companies. He was accused of money-laundering and alleged tax fraud, involving Silvio Berlusconi
, he was convicted in first instance and in appeal
, but the conviction was quashed by the Supreme Court of Cassation
. He has been married to the Labour Party
politician Tessa Jowell
since 1979, though they have been separated since 2006.
, his father Kenneth Mills, was a senior spy
. At the end of World War II
, Kenneth Mills was running MI5's
operations from Gibraltar
. Later, he was transferred to Jamaica and—according to a family legend—personally foiled an attempted revolution in Cuba
.
Privately educated, Mills went to University College, Oxford
and qualified as a barrister
in 1968.
Mills has three children from his first marriage, including journalist Eleanor Mills, formerly editor of The Sunday Times
News Review section and later editor of The Times
Saturday edition.
In 1979, David Mills was married to Tessa Jowell
, who had previously been married to social scientist
Roger Jowell
. Mills and Jowell had a son and daughter. In 2009, the couple owned houses in Kentish Town
in north London
and in Warwickshire
.
In March 2006, after Jowell had claimed that Mills had not told her, until four years after the event, that Mills had been given £340,000 for his work for Silvio Berlusconi
, the couple "agreed to a period of separation". However, questions have been raised as to the extent of this separation given that Mills and Jowell "appear, to all intents and purposes, very much a married couple."
Mills is the brother-in-law of Dame Barbara Mills
QC
, former Director of the Serious Fraud Office
(1990–1992), Director of Public Prosecutions
(1992–1998) and Adjudicator
for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
.
group of politicians and left-leaning celebrities, to which his second wife belongs.
Mills founded the niche private client law firm MacKenzie Mills which merged with Withers Worldwide
in 1995.
Silvio Berlusconi
in the early 1990s. This has been the cause of controversy and of allegations. David Mills was involved in setting up a large number of offshore trust
s for the "B Operation" as he termed Fininvest, Silvio Berlusconi's operations. Mills was investigated in Italy
for money-laundering and alleged tax fraud and on 10 March 2006 prosecutors in Milan asked a judge to order Mills and Berlusconi to stand trial on corruption charges. Prosecutors submitted 15,000 pages of documents to the preliminary hearing judge who will determine whether the case should go to full trial.
In February 2004, he had written to his accountants laying out a scenario where he would receive a large amount of money from the "B Operation" (Berlusconi's Fininvest) for having "turned some very tricky corners, to put it mildly" which "had kept Mr B out of a great deal of trouble that I would have landed him in if I had said all I knew".
He admitted this story to Italian prosecutors, later retracting it and claiming that the money came from someone else. One source cited was Diego Attanasio, a shipping magnate and another Italian client of Mills. Attanasio denies this story. Questions were also asked about a woman living on a council estate in London's East End who is recorded as a director or company secretary
of 19 companies which Mills established on behalf of his Italian clients.
On 17 February 2009, an Italian court sentenced David Mills to four years and six months in jail for accepting a bribe from Silvio Berlusconi to give false evidence on his behalf in corruption trials in 1997 and 1998.
On 27 October 2009, the Italian Appeal Court upheld his conviction and his sentence of 4½ years prison. He confirmed that he would initiate a second and final appeal to the Cassation Court.
On 25 February 2010, the Italian Cassation Court (the second and last court of appeal under Italian law) ruled a sentence of not guilty because the statute of limitations
expired. The supreme court judges ruled that he received the money in 1999, and not 2000 as prosecutors had previously argued. He was ordered to pay €250,000 compensation to the office of the Italian prime minister for "damaging its reputation".
secured a derogation from European limits on tobacco advertising after Bernie Ecclestone
contributed more than one million pounds to the Labour Party
during the 1997 General Election
.
Mahan Air
to buy a fleet of BAe 146
aircraft from British Aerospace
. He said the sale did not go through and that he was not granted any preferential treatment. However Foreign Office Minister Baroness Symons
gave advice to Mills on the political climate surrounding the project.
It was subsequently disclosed that as a consequence of these dealings, Ms Jowell has been excluded from Cabinet papers and talks on Iran since 2003.
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...
, he was convicted in first instance and in appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
, but the conviction was quashed by the Supreme Court of Cassation
Court of Cassation (Italy)
The Supreme Court of Cassation is the major court of last resort in Italy. It has its seat in the Rome Hall of Justice.The Court of Cassation exists also to “ensure the observation and the correct interpretation of law” by ensuring the same application of law in the inferior and appeal courts...
. He has been married to the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Dulwich and West Norwood since 1992. Formerly a member of both the Blair and Brown Cabinets, she is currently the Shadow Minister for the Olympics and Shadow Minister for London.-Early life:Tessa Jane...
since 1979, though they have been separated since 2006.
Early and personal life
According to The IndependentThe Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, his father Kenneth Mills, was a senior spy
SPY
SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...
. At the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Kenneth Mills was running MI5's
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
operations from Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
. Later, he was transferred to Jamaica and—according to a family legend—personally foiled an attempted revolution in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
.
Privately educated, Mills went to University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
and qualified as a barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
in 1968.
Mills has three children from his first marriage, including journalist Eleanor Mills, formerly editor of The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
News Review section and later editor of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
Saturday edition.
In 1979, David Mills was married to Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Dulwich and West Norwood since 1992. Formerly a member of both the Blair and Brown Cabinets, she is currently the Shadow Minister for the Olympics and Shadow Minister for London.-Early life:Tessa Jane...
, who had previously been married to social scientist
Social Scientist
Social Scientist is a New Delhi based journal in social sciences and humanities published since 1972....
Roger Jowell
Roger Jowell
Sir Roger Mark Jowell, CBE is a British social statistician and academic.-Early life:He was born in South Africa, and was active there in left-wing politics....
. Mills and Jowell had a son and daughter. In 2009, the couple owned houses in Kentish Town
Kentish Town
Kentish Town is an area of north west London, England in the London Borough of Camden.-History:The most widely accepted explanation of the name of Kentish Town is that it derived from 'Ken-ditch' meaning the 'bed of a waterway'...
in north London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and in Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
.
In March 2006, after Jowell had claimed that Mills had not told her, until four years after the event, that Mills had been given £340,000 for his work for Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...
, the couple "agreed to a period of separation". However, questions have been raised as to the extent of this separation given that Mills and Jowell "appear, to all intents and purposes, very much a married couple."
Mills is the brother-in-law of Dame Barbara Mills
Barbara Mills
Dame Barbara Jean Lyon Mills, DBE, QC was a British barrister. She held various senior public appointments including Director of Public Prosecutions, and was widely seen as a pioneer for women gaining such appointments in the higher echelons of the legal profession...
QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
, former Director of the Serious Fraud Office
Serious Fraud Office (UK)
The Serious Fraud Office is an independent UK Government department that investigates and prosecutes serious or complex fraud and corruption...
(1990–1992), Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions is the officer charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world...
(1992–1998) and Adjudicator
Adjudicator
An adjudicator is someone who presides, judges and arbitrates during a formal dispute. The term adjudicator essentially means a judge, without invoking the legal term. An ombudsman is a type of adjudicator in local government in the United Kingdom....
for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes and the payment of some forms of state support....
.
Professional career
David Mills was a barrister who became a commercial solicitor in the 1980s. He is a former Labour councillor in the London borough of Camden, and like others involved in the London Labour party of the 1980s is close to the BlairiteBlairite
In British politics, the term Blairism refers to the political ideology of former leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister Tony Blair, who left both positions in 2007 to become Envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East...
group of politicians and left-leaning celebrities, to which his second wife belongs.
Mills founded the niche private client law firm MacKenzie Mills which merged with Withers Worldwide
Withers (law firm)
Withersworldwide is an international law firm dedicated to advising successful people, their families and their businesses. Withers provides integrated advice on the US, UK and international legal and tax needs of their clients which can cover a large variety of issues such as restructuring their...
in 1995.
Berlusconi and "Jowellgate"
Mills acted for Italy's Prime MinisterPrime minister of Italy
The Prime Minister of Italy is the head of government of the Italian Republic...
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...
in the early 1990s. This has been the cause of controversy and of allegations. David Mills was involved in setting up a large number of offshore trust
Offshore trust
An offshore trust is simply a conventional trust that is formed under the laws of an offshore jurisdiction.Generally offshore trusts are similar in nature and effect to their onshore counterparts; they involve a settlor transferring assets on the trustees to manage for the benefit of a person or...
s for the "B Operation" as he termed Fininvest, Silvio Berlusconi's operations. Mills was investigated in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
for money-laundering and alleged tax fraud and on 10 March 2006 prosecutors in Milan asked a judge to order Mills and Berlusconi to stand trial on corruption charges. Prosecutors submitted 15,000 pages of documents to the preliminary hearing judge who will determine whether the case should go to full trial.
In February 2004, he had written to his accountants laying out a scenario where he would receive a large amount of money from the "B Operation" (Berlusconi's Fininvest) for having "turned some very tricky corners, to put it mildly" which "had kept Mr B out of a great deal of trouble that I would have landed him in if I had said all I knew".
He admitted this story to Italian prosecutors, later retracting it and claiming that the money came from someone else. One source cited was Diego Attanasio, a shipping magnate and another Italian client of Mills. Attanasio denies this story. Questions were also asked about a woman living on a council estate in London's East End who is recorded as a director or company secretary
Company secretary
A company secretary is a senior position in a private company or public organisation, normally in the form of a managerial position or above. In the United States it is known as a corporate secretary....
of 19 companies which Mills established on behalf of his Italian clients.
On 17 February 2009, an Italian court sentenced David Mills to four years and six months in jail for accepting a bribe from Silvio Berlusconi to give false evidence on his behalf in corruption trials in 1997 and 1998.
Appeal
His defence counsel said that he would appeal, claiming that the sentence went "against the logic and dynamic of the evidence presented." Ms Jowell said "although we are separated I have never doubted his innocence."On 27 October 2009, the Italian Appeal Court upheld his conviction and his sentence of 4½ years prison. He confirmed that he would initiate a second and final appeal to the Cassation Court.
On 25 February 2010, the Italian Cassation Court (the second and last court of appeal under Italian law) ruled a sentence of not guilty because the statute of limitations
Statute of limitations
A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated...
expired. The supreme court judges ruled that he received the money in 1999, and not 2000 as prosecutors had previously argued. He was ordered to pay €250,000 compensation to the office of the Italian prime minister for "damaging its reputation".
Ecclestone
Mills was also involved when Formula One RacingFormula One racing
A Formula One race or Grand Prix is a sporting event which takes place over three days , with a series of practice and qualifying sessions prior to a race on Sunday....
secured a derogation from European limits on tobacco advertising after Bernie Ecclestone
Bernie Ecclestone
Bernard Charles "Bernie" Ecclestone is an English business magnate, as president and CEO of Formula One Management and Formula One Administration and through his part-ownership of Alpha Prema, the parent company of the Formula One Group of companies. As such, he is generally considered the primary...
contributed more than one million pounds to the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
during the 1997 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
.
Trading with Iran
In 2003, it was revealed he was involved in an unsuccessful deal for Iranian airlineAirlines of Iran
Iran has several private and public airline companies in operation. The oldest is Iran Air.As of June 2009, Iranian planes fly 45 international flight routes....
Mahan Air
Mahan Air
Mahan Airlines, doing business as Mahan Air, is a private airline based in the Mahan Air Tower in Tehran, Iran. It operates scheduled domestic services and international flights to the Far East, Middle East, Central Asia, and Europe...
to buy a fleet of BAe 146
BAe 146
The British Aerospace 146 is a medium-sized commercial airliner formerly manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2002. Manufacture of an improved version known as the Avro RJ began in 1992...
aircraft from British Aerospace
British Aerospace
British Aerospace plc was a UK aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer. Its head office was in the Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire...
. He said the sale did not go through and that he was not granted any preferential treatment. However Foreign Office Minister Baroness Symons
Elizabeth Symons, Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean
Elizabeth Conway Symons, Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean, PC is a British life peer and former General Secretary of the FDA Trade Union and a Minister of State...
gave advice to Mills on the political climate surrounding the project.
It was subsequently disclosed that as a consequence of these dealings, Ms Jowell has been excluded from Cabinet papers and talks on Iran since 2003.
External links
- Focus: The minister and the £350,000 gift, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, February 26, 2006 - David Mills statement from his lawyer, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 4 March 2006 - Charges laid against Mills and Berlusconi, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 10 March 2006