ASSET RECOVERY & ENFORCEMENT
Stemming from our longtime collaborations with the American Bureau of Credit and with other major foreign credit rating agencies, as well as with foreign debt collection agencies on commercial debt collection in Romania from industrial, IP, trade, insurance and service credit defaults, pairing technical expertise with exceptional client service, it was natural for our practice to grow and diversify with fraud-related asset recovery and enforcement in highly critical or damaging cases - including class-actions - involving crypto fraud, cyber fraud, software and copyright infringement and piracy, employee embezzlement, insurance fraud, securities fraud, bribery or corruption. Given our intertwined expertise on criminal, civil, administrative, media, privacy and technology law as well as our litigation skills, and the economic transformations of a dynamic digital and tokenised economy, where value is more and more captured in or represented by volatile, versatile or fungible digital tokens, cryptocurrencies and various financial assets, instruments and securities, Mararu & Mararu SCA was probably one of the first Romanian law firms to establish a DIGITAL ASSETS Recovery and Enforcement legal practice almost ten years ago. Tracking down and seizing hidden assets and valuables, and particularly volatile assets such as crypto, money and financial instruments require fast and decisive actions including quick tactical and forensic response, and good command or understanding of, and know-how on - preserving, collecting and ensuring a proper custodianship chain of legal ESI (electronically stored evidence), - blockchain and cross-border financial investigations, - the relevant technologies involved, - private and public international law, as well as on the various national legal procedures of the countries involved, - analysing and properly using the technological, cyber, financial and other relevant intelligence and evidence furnished by the client and the law enforcement agencies, - bypassing counter-forensic and laundering methods and tactics, making it essential for clients to retain specialised, tech-savvy and experienced counsels able to support a multidisciplinary, cross-border, laborious, intense, fast paced and tactical teamwork in an ever-evolving environment of the digital economy and the cyberspace.
First Response Assistance
Whenever you believe fraud is involved, it is imperative to move quickly. As first response, an asset owner, manager or custodian must take quick action and implement measures in order to secure a recovery path, following a clear, strict and methodologically-specific recovery plan for the type of asset and fraud involved, deal with media or public implications, ensure business continuity or recovery, (re)evaluate business partnerships and human resources as the case may be, review and enforce company policies and regulations etc. Our team can help with the preliminary investigations, advise clients on the proper methods for legal preservation and collection of evidence so it may be admissible in courts, advise upon or represent clients with preservation of evidence and E.S.I. in front of third party E.S.I. custodians in Romania or abroad, advise upon the types of responses and the legal avenues available, keep the legal narrative lined up with the facts and the conclusions reached after examination or investigation, and reassess it following the issuance of authoritative decisions or conclusions.
Enforcement and Recovery
Obtaining a court ruling is almost never the last step in asset recovery, unless when a still valid provisional injunction is secured at the time of the ruling. Enforcing a favourable ruling is equally important and complex, requiring a steady involvement in order to secure a successful outcome: proper recovery/collection mechanisms in place, prioritisation of the credit title, fighting motions, ensuring proper securities for recovering the assets from third parties' hands, dealing with international enforcement implications and so on.
Conducting Legal Reviews
Conducting legal reviews for asset issuers, offerers, managers and custodians, we provide diverse fraud prevention recommendations and strategies, prepare and help implement policies, issue legal opinions, run or assist with internal investigations. We also provide risk assessments for issuers, offerers as well as for qualified or unqualified investors before and during their funding or investments (crowdfunding, investment or funding schemes, ICOs, IPOs, tokenisation projects, securities etc.).
Obtaining Recovery Rulings
We assist clients with drafting and filing court and administrative actions for provisional asset-freezing injunctions even before the actual litigation begins, with drafting and filing recovery legal actions both in civil and penal courts, file court motions, administrative petitions, aggregate stakeholders and experts opinions, represent clients before courts, law enforcement agencies and precarious assets holders or custodians, oversee the legality of the civil or the penal process, advise upon judiciary or extrajudiciary forensic analysis and so much more.
Fraud Prevention & Risk Assessment
Asset issuers, managers and custodians have regulatory, fiduciary or self-regulatory obligations to establish best market or industry policies and practices when it comes to the security, reliability and credibility of their ecosystems, managing or custodial services, systems and organisations. In a constantly evolving environment, especially in the digital realm, no one asset custodian, lawyer, law enforcement officer, prosecutor, judge, specialist or analyst may claim awareness of all existing fraud types and laundering mechanisms worldwide, making prevention a much, much better, faster, surer and cheaper alternative to recovery. Conducting fraud risk assessments for asset issuers, offerors, managers and custodians, we provide diverse fraud prevention recommendations and strategies, prepare and help implement policies, issue legal opinions, run or assist with internal legal investigations. We also provide risk assessments for issuers, offerors as well as for qualified or unqualified investors before and during their funding or investments (crowdfunding, investment or funding schemes, ICOs, IPOs, tokenisation projects, securities etc.).
Assisting throughout Forensic Investigations
Combining our advertising, marketing and labelling expertise with our consumer law practice, our law firm has also often advised major consumer products manufacturers on various compliance areas such as on the legal and regulatory requirements concerning packaging, safety standards, use instructions, fire and other warnings, producer's conformity, language or traceability requirements, dangerous substances, WEEE , PPE, CE and other marks and instructions.
❡ Legal assistance and court litigation in a pyramidal (Ponzi) insurance scheme fraud, with 182 damaged parties and €5,000,000 in damages. The case took 4 years to complete by final judgement that sentenced the guilty party to prison
and to repay the damages, out of which over €3,500,000 have been repaid during the initial stages of the trial.
❡ Legal assistance and representation in a case prosecuted by DIICOT Romania (Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism), with the assistance of the BCCO (Organised Crime Combat Brigade of the Romanian Police), the F.B.I., the EUROPOL and a dozen other foreign law enforcement agencies (international law enforcement collaborations based on MLAT - Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties and letters rogatory etc.) involving a cross-border 55,000 BTC rolled-over crypto-mining Ponzi scheme perpetrated out of Romania with over 10,000 BTC in direct damages and over 355.000 BTC in consequential damages for 48 foreign investors.
❡ Legal assistance in a crypto fraud case perpetrated out of Italy for the recovery of digital crypto assets for international investors.
Working Hours
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Office Address
Mon - Fri: 9am - 6pm
11F Carpatilor Street
075100 Otopeni, Romania