Money laundering.
Defence lawyer for money-laundering cases under Law 129/2019: the autonomy of the offence from the predicate offence, frozen accounts and confiscation, before the prosecutor’s office (DNA, DIICOT) and the courts. We step in from the criminal investigation stage and assist you through to the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.
When you need a lawyer
Your accounts or assets have been frozen on suspicion of money laundering
You are under investigation for money laundering linked to a predicate offence (fraud, tax evasion, corruption)
You are accused of money laundering through companies, cash or crypto-assets
You have been sent to trial under art. 49 of Law 129/2019
How we work
Tracing the funds
We map the origin and the flow of the money and the alleged link to a predicate offence.
Procedural review
We test how the suspicion was built, the freezing measures and the lawfulness of the evidence.
Defence on the merits
We challenge the legal classification, the criminal origin of the assets and the proof that you knew of it, which must rest on objective facts.
Who represents you
Dr George Zlati is a partner at ZIC Legal (Zlati Ionescu Chiperi SCA), based in Cluj-Napoca and practising nationwide. As counsel, he drafted and argued the constitutional challenges upheld by the Constitutional Court in Decisions no. 87/2019 and no. 233/2021, and in 2020 he received the “Vintilă Dongoroz” Prize of the Union of Jurists of Romania.
- Author, Treatise on Cybercrime
- Cited in binding ÎCCJ rulings
- External collaborator, INM
- Vintilă Dongoroz Award 2020
- Corruption & abuse-of-office offences
- Cybercrime
- Economic offences
- LL.M. criminal sciences (top of class)
Frequently asked questions
Can I be convicted of money laundering without a conviction for the predicate offence?
Yes. In HP no. 16/2016, the High Court of Cassation and Justice held that money laundering is an autonomous offence, not conditional on a conviction for the offence from which the assets derive. The ruling concerned art. 29 of Law no. 656/2002, whose forms of the offence were carried over into art. 49 of Law 129/2019. The prosecution must still prove the criminal origin of the funds and that you knew of it, and that knowledge is established from objective factual circumstances (art. 49 (4)). That proof is often the decisive point of the defence. See our white-collar crime practice.
My accounts were frozen: can I challenge it?
Yes. Freezing and seizure measures can be contested and their scope limited to the suspected amount. Acting early protects cash-flow and the running of the business.
Does moving money through crypto count as money laundering?
It can, depending on intent and on the origin of the funds. Tracing and the technical analysis of blockchain transactions are often decisive. See our cybercrime and crypto practice.
What is a predicate offence?
The underlying crime that generated the funds (fraud, tax evasion, corruption). Its proof is tied to the laundering charge.
Can crypto-assets be traced, seized or confiscated in a laundering case?
Yes. Crypto-assets can be traced on-chain, frozen at exchanges and confiscated like any other proceeds. The defence focuses on the reliability of the blockchain analysis, the real link to a predicate offence and the lawfulness of the seizure; movements through mixers, crypto exchanges or self-custody wallets each raise distinct evidentiary questions. See our cybercrime and crypto practice.
Related areas
Don’t wait for the first hearing.
Who assists you from day one matters.