This
course comprises a series of 4 bite-size webinars dealing with aspects of Proceeds
of Crime Act (POCA) confiscation. Each webinar comes complete with authorities
and a problem question to consolidate your knowledge.
Part 1 -
Making a Confiscation Order
Prosecutors
and investigators make money from POCA confiscation orders if they can enforce
them. Defendants who fail to pay up face imprisonment. So, both sides have an
incentive to understand how confiscation orders are made and what can go wrong.
This webinar
looks at the power to make such an order, the limited power to refuse to make
an order, procedure - who serves what and when? Is hearsay admissible? What is
the burden of proof? Whom is that burden upon? How much are the prosecution
looking for? Can an order be made in absence? Can it be varied?
Part 2 -
Criminal Lifestyle or Particular Criminal Conduct?
When
making a confiscation order, a court must first ascertain whether the defendant
has what POCA calls a " criminal lifestyle" or whether the defendant
benefits solely from his "particular criminal, conduct" i.e. the
offence(s) he has committed in these proceedings. Once this is established, the
court can then calculate the order. Knowing which basis applies is
important as the former can lead to confiscation in a sum equivalent to all the
defendant has owned, spend and received in the last 6 years.
Aimed at
both prosecution and defence, the webinar will set out the tests and the case
law which has developed as a result. Consideration is also given to the
relevance of each basis when making a charging decision or considering pleas.
Part 3
- How Much are the Prosecution After?
This
session will explain the concepts of "benefit" and " recoverable
amount" under POCA. This is the maximum the Prosecutor can extract today.
We will consider how that figure is calculated looking at the statutory
provisions and case law. The webinar considers when to raise arguments over the
benefit figure, how to counter such arguments and case law.
Part 4 -
How Much Has He Got?
Building
on the earlier webinars in this series, we now turn to look at the concept of
the "available amount" under s9. In other words, what is this
defendant worth? Using case law, you will learn the definition of "
available", what is or is not " available", how to value assets,
what constitutes a " tainted gift" and what is or is not " free
property".