A disgraced Israeli lawyer has launched a unique legal bid to block a Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) investigation into his alleged multi-million pound assets in the UK.

Israel Perry was jailed for 12 years in October 2007 for aggravated fraud, embezzlement, obstruction of justice and violation of insurance laws following a six-year trial in Israel. His sentence was later cut to 10 years.

Mr Perry, his wife Lea Lili, and daughters Tamar Greenspoon and Yael Perry are urging top judges at London's Civil Appeal Court to overturn the disclosure order granted to SOCA, which they claim is invalid because they do not live within the UK's jurisdiction.

Mr Perry's scheme was established in 1983 and gave Israelis the opportunity to receive pensions from West Germany. About 30,000 Israelis signed up and were asked to make payments to an insurance company registered in the Cayman Islands. It was that part of the scheme that triggered the criminal charges.

Anthony Peto QC, representing SOCA, said that Mr Perry, his wife and daughters all had bank accounts in the UK and that Mr Perry had "past and present business interests" here. They all had London addresses, he added, and SOCA had posted the disclosure order to their home in Westminster.