Financial crime

Financial crime covers a range of different types of criminal cases. We assist in cases involving tax evasion, VAT fraud, fraud, money laundering and corporate crime, among others.

When you are charged in a financial criminal case, it is crucial to understand how the authorities work with the case.

The attorneys at HAY LAW who handle financial criminal cases and tax criminal law have experience from the prosecution service. We therefore know the process behind a criminal case, from investigation and evidence gathering to the prosecution's assessment of the case and its subsequent treatment before the courts.

This gives us a strong starting point for critically assessing the authorities' investigation, identifying the weak and strong points of the case and tailoring the defence accordingly.

At the same time, our tax attorneys have many years of experience with complex tax cases. That is particularly valuable in tax criminal cases, where the tax and criminal aspects of the case are often closely connected.

In financial criminal cases, decisions made early in the process can have great significance later in the case.

This includes questions such as whether and when to give a statement, what material should be disclosed, whether there is a need for further investigation, and how to respond to the authorities' presentation of the case.

We therefore generally recommend that defence counsel be involved as early as possible.

If the police wish to question you, or if a search, seizure or other investigative step is carried out, you should have the opportunity to obtain advice on your legal position before decisions are made that may later be difficult to change.

Some financial crime cases do not begin with the police. They may, for example, start with an audit by the Danish Tax Agency, where the authorities request accounting material, bank statements or other information. Only later does the question of possible criminal liability arise.

It can also happen that a case arises from a bankruptcy, where a trustee files a police report based on their investigations.

In tax criminal cases it is particularly important to be aware of the connection between the tax case itself and the potential criminal case. If the Danish Tax Agency has, for example, increased a person's or company's taxable income, VAT or duties, that decision may subsequently become central to the assessment of possible criminal liability.

This also means that a strategic position must be taken on whether the underlying tax decision should be appealed, how the appeal should be conducted and how it should be coordinated with the criminal case. At HAY LAW, our tax attorneys and attorneys with prosecution experience work together on these cases. That means we can address both the tax and the criminal track from the very beginning.

There is no single standard course. A case may begin with an inquiry from an authority, a report, a search or a summons for questioning. The police and prosecution service may then carry out an extensive investigation, which can include interviews, review of financial material, seizures and obtaining information from third parties.

Along the way, a number of questions must continuously be addressed, including:

A financial criminal case can develop quickly.

If the police search a business or private home, seize computers, phones or documents, or summon you for questioning, the situation can feel both overwhelming and unmanageable.

In that situation it is important to quickly gain an overview of what the suspicion concerns and what rights you have. We assist both during the initial investigation and throughout the remainder of the criminal case and can advise on questioning, access to documents, seizure, search and other investigative steps.

Financial crime cases can extend over long periods and involve very large volumes of material. They therefore require not only specialist legal knowledge, but also structure, availability and persistence.

At HAY LAW the responsible attorney follows the case closely throughout the entire process. We work systematically with the material and continuously keep the client informed about developments, the most significant risks and the decisions that must be made.

For us, a good defence is also about the client knowing what is happening.

Being charged with financial crime can affect far more than the specific criminal case. For business owners and executives, the case may also have significance for the company, its finances and its reputation. That requires a relationship of trust with the attorney conducting the case.

At HAY LAW you get a defence counsel who examines the case thoroughly, is available when important decisions must be made, and who is not afraid to challenge the authorities' assessment or investigation when there are grounds to do so.

We conduct financial criminal cases throughout Denmark and assist the client from the first contact with the authorities until the case is finally concluded.

The earlier we enter the case, the better our opportunity to gain an overview and set a strategy for the process ahead.

You are therefore welcome to contact HAY LAW if you have been charged, summoned for questioning, subjected to search or seizure, or if you have received information that a case may be on its way to the police or the prosecution service.

Contact an attorney specialising in financial criminal cases.