POCA Confiscation Orders

Following a criminal conviction, facing a POCA Confiscation Order can be a second, devastating blow. These orders are designed to strip you of any assets believed to be the proceeds of crime, and the process is complex, intrusive, and can have life-altering financial consequences. The prosecution has immense power to investigate your entire financial history, often going back many years. Challenging a confiscation order requires a specialist legal team with deep expertise in financial crime and the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA).

At Central Chambers Law, our senior legal consultants are masters of this highly specialised area of law. We understand that the figures presented by the prosecution can be wildly inflated and based on flawed assumptions. Our function is to provide a formidable, strategic defence that meticulously scrutinises the prosecution's case, protects your legitimate assets, and negotiates a fair and realistic outcome. We are not general criminal lawyers; our focused expertise in POCA proceedings gives us the critical knowledge needed to defend your financial future.

Understanding the Offence: What is a Confiscation Order?

A Confiscation Order is an order made by the Crown Court after a person has been convicted of an offence from which they have financially benefited. Its purpose is to recover the financial benefit a person has gained from their criminal conduct.

The process is governed by the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. The court must decide two key figures:

1. The Benefit Figure: The total value of the benefit you have gained from your criminal conduct.
2. The Available Amount: The total value of all your current assets, minus any secured debts. This can include property, cars, money, jewellery, and even assets you have given away as "tainted gifts."

The court will then make an order for you to pay the lower of these two figures.

How the Prosecution Builds its Case

Once you are convicted, the prosecution will begin an exhaustive financial investigation to calculate the "benefit" and "available amount." They have significant powers to demand information from banks, employers, and other financial institutions.

A critical aspect is whether the court decides you have a "criminal lifestyle." This applies in cases involving specified offences (like drug trafficking or money laundering) or patterns of criminal activity. If a criminal lifestyle is established, the court can make sweeping assumptions:

• All property transferred to you in the last six years is assumed to be the proceeds of crime.
• All your income and expenditure in the last six years is assumed to be from a criminal source.

The burden then shifts to you to prove that your assets and income came from a legitimate source.

Why Central Chambers Law Provides the Definitive Defence

Challenging a confiscation order is a highly technical legal battle. The prosecution's initial figures are often daunting and appear insurmountable. A general lawyer will not have the specialist financial and legal knowledge to effectively challenge them.

Clients trust Central Chambers Law because we are experts in dismantling the prosecution's case in POCA proceedings. Our reputation is built on our meticulous financial analysis and powerful advocacy. Our strategic approach involves:

• Challenging the 'Criminal Lifestyle' Assumption: We vigorously fight against the application of the criminal lifestyle provisions, arguing that your case does not meet the legal threshold. This is a critical first step in limiting the scope of the order.
• Forensic Financial Analysis: We conduct our own detailed investigation into your finances, working with forensic accountants to build a clear and credible picture of your legitimate income and assets. We provide the evidence to rebut the prosecution's assumptions.
• Contesting the 'Benefit' Figure: We scrutinise every element of the prosecution's calculation, identifying double-counting, factual errors, and flawed interpretations to significantly reduce the final benefit figure.
• Negotiating the 'Available Amount': We ensure that the valuation of your assets is realistic and that all legitimate debts and third-party interests (such as a partner's share in a property) are properly accounted for, reducing the amount you are ordered to pay.

Our focused expertise means we are equipped to protect your legitimate assets and ensure that any order made is fair and based on fact, not fiction.

Consequences of a Confiscation Order

A Confiscation Order is a debt you owe to the state. The court will set a strict deadline for payment.

• Failure to pay the full amount within the specified time will result in the activation of a default prison sentence.

This default sentence is served in addition to your original sentence for the main offence, and crucially, serving it does not cancel the debt. The interest continues to accrue, and the authorities can pursue the debt indefinitely.

Protect Your Assets with an Expert Defence

A POCA Confiscation Order is a direct threat to your and your family's financial security. The process is aggressive and the assumptions made by the prosecution can be overwhelming. A proactive, specialist defence is essential to protect what is rightfully yours.

Do not face this complex financial investigation alone. Contact our expert POCA solicitors immediately for a confidential consultation and take the first critical step in building your defence.

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