739 victims of Quilter and Friends Provident claimed for misrepresentation in IoM. Deemster James Corbett KC failed to deliver a judgement.
Monday 8th June 2026. D Day for 739 victims of investment fraud. D Day for the long-awaited delivery of the determination of the Signature Litigation case. But in this case D stands for death and deception – as the judge (deemster) has resigned and a re-trial has been ordered. The situation is, without question, disgusting.
739 fraud victims who had lost their life savings sued Life offices Quilter International and Friends Provident for causing horrific investment losses. What the defendants had done was allow unregulated scammers to choose toxic, high-risk, illiquid investments (from the defendants’ own investment platforms) for their victims. The scammers got rich on fat commissions paid by Quilter and Friends Provident. And 17 of these claimants have died waiting in vain for justice.
The claimants were represented by London law firm Signature Litigation and consisted of people who had been conned into depositing their life savings into portfolio bonds (also known as offshore bonds). These included bonds provided by Quilter International and Friends Provident International – two of the worst ones for facilitating investment fraud. The conmen chose totally unsuitable investments purely for the hidden commissions – rather than because they were suitable for the victims. The inevitable results were horrific – leaving investors destitute and in despair.
The Signature case had been going on for six years. And 8th June 2026 was the eighth date that had been promised for the long-awaited judgement by acting deemster (“judge”) James Corbett KC. The original 20-day trial had concluded in May 2024. But then the judgement was eaten by Corbett’s dog at least eight times as he was too ill to take it out for a walk.
The defendants (the “death” offices) – Quilter and Friends Provident) have, meanwhile, carried on cheerfully flogging their dreadful “portfolio bonds” through commission-hungry salesmen. The perpetrators have continued making large fortunes – while the victims suffer poverty, ill-health and death.
So what does this say about the Isle of Man? It is a cold and cloudy version of Malta – which similarly harbours fraud and scammers. More accurately known as the “Isle of Scam”, this grubby little island has only one real industry: investment fraud – and feeding the ever-hungry undisclosed-commission machine.
The reaction by the judiciary has been limp at best. First Deemster Andrew Corlett has called the two-year delay “unacceptable”. A bit like calling the Yorkshire Ripper “unkind”.
A replacement judge has been appointed to take over from lead-swinger Corbett. Let us hope the new chap is in good health. And does not have a hungry dog.
A hearing is booked for August 2026 to arrange a retrial. Allegedly, recordings of the original trial may be used to freshen the court’s memory – and conscience.
This retrial is likely to be run alongside the other action in progress against the same defendants for similar losses suffered by another 1,600 victims. This second action is represented by Forsters Solicitors in a trial booked for March 15th 2027.
But serious questions remain:
- Should Deemster Corbett be prosecuted for deliberately and negligently prejudicing the interests of the claimants and failing in his duty as an officer of the court?
- Why didn’t First Deemster Andrew Corlett take action sooner to discipline and replace the sickly Corbett?
- Where is the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority in all this fraud? It must be aware of how many thousands of victims of Quilter International, Friends Provident International (and others, such as Hansard, RL360 and Utmost) have lost their life savings in a similar way.
- What is the Serious Fraud Office doing about all this fraud? The “portfolio bond” (or offshore bond) is well known as being the main weapon of choice for the fraudsters who use and abuse it across the globe.
- How many so-called advisory firms who flog high-risk, unsuitable, unregulated insurance bonds and toxic assets are also involved in this massive, worldwide fraud?
Perhaps the gentle reader might ask why no sympathy is expressed for poor Acting Deemster James Corbett KC. He has, after all, been too ill to stop his dog from eating the judgement. Eight times in two years. Doesn’t he merit some pity?
To help us decide, let’s look at his performance this past year while the victims suffered, despaired and died:
11.07.25 – Deemster Corbett promised the victims that the judgement would be delivered by 08.09.25. He also promised there would be updates issued every two weeks
25.07.25 – Corbett repeated his promise that the judgement was on track to be delivered by 08.09.25
11.08.25 – Corbett issued an update stating he was still on track for delivery of the judgement on 08.09.25
26.08.25 – Corbett repeated his promise that he was still on track for 08.09.25
12.09.25 – the court announced that Corbett would need another two weeks as he had been ill, but that the judgement would be issued during the week of 29.09.25
29.09.25 – the court announced that Corbett was still working on the judgement and that he was still on track
03.10.25 – Corbett changed the date for delivery of the judgement to 13.10.25
13.10.25 – the court announced that the judgement wasn’t finished but “the end is in sight”
30.10.25 – the court announced there was no new date for publication of the judgement
10.11.25 – the court announced that Corbett would not issue the judgement before 01.12.25
06.01.26 – Corbett stated he had made “substantial progress” on the judgement but claimed to have fallen over and promised the judgement would be ready by 16.02.26
12.01.26 – Corbett claimed to have had a stroke and to have tested positive for Covid
23.01.26 – the court announced that the judgement was going to be late but that Corbett was still working on it “slowly”
03.03.26 – the court reported that it needed proof that Corbett was fit to work on the judgement, and a hearing previously scheduled for 11.03.26 (to formally hand down the judgement) was cancelled
24.03.26 – Corbett was declared to be fit to work and the judgement was promised for 25.05.26
25.03.26 – the court reported that the judgement would be circulated by 01.06.26 and handed down during the week of 08.06.26
01.06.26 – the court announced that Corbett was going to be late publishing the judgement. And then Corbett resigned – citing “ill health”. However, it is not clear whether it was Corbett who was supposedly in ill health, or his dog who had repeatedly eaten the draft judgements
So over a nine-month period, eight different judgement-delivery dates were promised – and Corbett reneged on every single one of them. This isn’t just “the dog ate my homework” – it is clearly deliberate evasion of judicial responsibility – on the part of Deemster Corbett and the court itself.
So, sympathy for Deemster Corbett? He obviously had none for the 739 fraud victims who lost their life savings – or the 16 who died in poverty.
Let us ask ourselves why though? Surely the Isle of Man court itself would want to see justice done for so many victims of investment fraud?
The answer inevitably lies in the fact that the Isle of Man only has one industry: investment fraud. It is the hub of the global network of scammers who masquerade as “independent financial advisers”. The practice of selling “products” rather than genuine financial advice (almost exclusively to British expats) lies at the heart of why so many victims have lost their pensions and life savings. The “free pension review”, “guaranteed returns”, “greater freedom of investment”, “asset protection”, “capital safety” are all convincing buzz words in the fraudsters’ toolbox – all facilitated and rewarded by the defendants in the Signature Litigation claim.
The bosses who manage and direct the defendants (and all similar companies) all operate as a “cartel” – with identical hidden commissions on the insurance bonds and the underlying investments. And they all hang out at the same exclusive bars, golf clubs, sailing clubs and brothels. Along with the judges. And the regulators.
The brokers who feed the greedy Isle of Man commission-fraud machine include the usual suspects: Abbey Wealth, Blevins Franks, Brite Advisors (run by convicted fraudsters Mark Donnelly and Gordon Couch), Chase Buchanan, deVere (run by Nigel Green – Mark Donnelly‘s business partner), Finsbury Financial, Globaleye; Guardian Wealth Management; Holborn Assets; Spectrum, Square Mile, and Worldwide Broker. Of course some of these firms have since closed down and re-invented themselves – as new, shiny, updated versions of their original formats. But, still at the heart of their business is the offshore bond, the toxic investments and the secret commissions.
Let us pose one more key question which may reveal why Deemster Corbett has spent two years feeding his judgement to his paper-loving dog:
“DID DEEMSTER CORBETT FIND FOR THE CLAIMANTS OR FOR THE DEFENDANTS???”
If Deemster Corbett had found for the defendants – Quilter and Friends Provident – surely he and his boss Deemster Corlett and the rest of the Isle of Scam judiciary would have moved heaven and earth to publish the judgement? There would have been a swift and enthusiastic public announcement declaring these firms and their bosses to be above criticism and innocent of any wrong-doing. And the defendants and all their accomplices would have held a lavish banquet.
If, on the other hand, Corbett had found for the claimants, then the defendants and all the fraudsters who depended so heavily on them, would have tried every trick in the book to stop the judgement from being published.
