In that context, in civil proceedings if the courts have a jurisdiction which requires them to look at the extent of the wealth of an individual, the courts can, as they can in other circumstances, grant what is known as an order for discovery which requires that individual to swear an affidavit setting out all available documentation that details their assets. That can then be examined by the lawyers seeking to establish what that person's assets are. That documentation may be used to further inquiries being made to ascertain whether documents are being concealed or if a full and frank disclosure has been made. It would seem that the legislation does not provide for that. It is a question of the Director of Public Prosecutions relying on whatever information comes his way.
If I were a drug baron and had made a couple of million pounds out of the sale of drugs and had an account in Jersey, in the Isle of Man or in the Cayman Islands, I would not see any need to pick up the telephone and call the Director of Public Prosecutions to tell him where the money was and where the accounts were. Indeed, getting an order for discovery in those circumstances may not result in a full and frank disclosure and it may require a good deal of Garda work to establish where the money is; indeed, that information may not be ascertainable at all.
It would seem that there should be an onus on the defendant to provide information and it should be an offence to give misleading information. Some aspects of this may be addressed in the legislation. Again I am raising these points because there is a danger that the legislation may not achieve what we would all like to see it achieve if these points are not addressed in that kind of detail.
