Denial of Safe Haven to Corrupt Officials OAS Anti Corruption Meeting March 28th 2005

1
Denial of Safe Haven to Corrupt OfficialsOAS
Anti Corruption MeetingMarch 28th 2005
Stephen Baker BakerPlatt

2

• Key is Political Will
• Political Will of
• The victim country
• Transit countries
• The country harbouring assets and
• Those countries whose companies have paid bribes.

3

• A Strategy
• There must be a strategy
• Where has the money gone?
• How has the money gone?
• How are we going to get the money back?

4

• Where Has It Gone? How Has It Gone?
• Understanding Methods of Corruption
• False invoicing
• Inflation of contract prices
• False consultancy services
• Manipulation of privatisation schemes
• Direct theft.

5

• Denial of Safe Haven
• How to Get it Back
• Criminal Recovery?
• Civil Recovery?
• Both ?
• Understand the difference between common law and
  civil law systems
• Keep the material gathered secure and secret

6

• Use of Criminal Investigations
• Criminal law system of the victim country
• Criminal law systems of those countries
  harbouring assets
• Prompting investigations by those sheltering
  assets
• Ukraine and California
• Evidence gathering.

7

• International Co-operation
• Which country should be approached first?
• The distinction between the United Kingdom and
  Switzerland
• Le dossier
• Is a Treaty needed?
• Turning information into evidence
• Understanding the distinctions between countries
  systems.

8

• Use of Civil Asset Recovery Methods
• Where to sue?
• Who to sue?
• Which countries are most favourable to these
  actions?
• Benefits of civil law systems
• Benefits of common law systems
• Will the overseas government help in civil
  recovery?
• Asset recovery agency, London
• Will it work?

9

• A Cause For Optimism
• Just under half a billion dollars returned to
  Nigeria from Switzerland
• Over one hundred and sixty million dollars
  returned to Nigeria from Jersey, Channel Islands
• Why?
• Political will Switzerland and Jersey.
• Will others pay money back?
• Why have others not paid money back?

10
BakerPlatt
Jersey London Tel. [phone] Tel. [phone]
1530 Fax.[phone] Fax.[phone]
8898 www.bakerplatt.com