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11 - Confiscation and Forfeiture of Property in Connection with Alleged Unlawful Conduct

A Preliminary Assessment of Risks and Process

from Part III - Criminal Justice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2025

Kai Ambos
Affiliation:
Georg August Universität Göttingen
Antony Duff
Affiliation:
University of Stirling
Alexander Heinze
Affiliation:
University of Bremen
Julian Roberts
Affiliation:
University of Oxford
Thomas Weigend
Affiliation:
University of Köln
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Summary

This chapter focuses on the practices of confiscation and forfeiture, by which the government permanently transfers money or property from the individual to the state, without compensation, because of a connection between the property and alleged unlawful conduct. The chapter describes and critically considers the rules on both conviction-based confiscation and forfeiture and those allowed without obtaining a conviction in six jurisdictions in Europe (the European Union, Finland, Germany, Norway, Sweden, England & Wales) and relatively common practices at the federal and state levels in the United States. The chapter describes and examines several of the purported benefits and costs of these practices as well as key issues related to adjudicatory processes and statutory and constitutional protections. In doing so, the chapter identifies a number of fundamental areas of concern, offering some suggested avenues for reform or further study.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

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