Introduction
Fraud
The risk of becoming a victim of fraud has only been exacerbated by developments in AI technology. Tanner De Witt regularly acts for victims of large-scale sophisticated fraud, particularly cybercrime involving individuals, businesses, and governments.
We act quickly and decisively by obtaining court orders, liaising with local and international law enforcement and financial institutions to recover assets. Our track record speaks for itself; we have been able to obtain freezing injunction and bank disclosure relief within several hours of being instructed.
Our practice handles various legal issues related to financial fraud, including cases of embezzlement, Ponzi schemes, identity theft, money laundering, crypto fraud, and other deceptive activities aimed at unlawfully obtaining assets or deceiving individuals or entities.
In addition to providing rapid and practical legal solutions, Troy Greig is the sole Hong Kong member of FraudNet, ICC’s global network of fraud specialists.
Our Restructuring and Insolvency Practice is also regularly involved in fraud claims, principally in connection with frauds causing the collapse of companies or arising from investigations by liquidators or trustees in bankruptcy. Our assignments in this area often involve complex investigative, legal and jurisdictional issues.
Asset Tracing and Recovery
Our Asset Recovery Practice is dedicated to addressing the identification and retrieval of assets that have been unlawfully obtained or misappropriated, impacting both individuals and businesses alike.
Our lawyers are recognised for their ability to speedily deal with domestic and multi-jurisdictional asset tracing and recovery exercises. We have close relationships with leading practitioners in many other jurisdictions and coordinate with them on cross-border cases. We are frequently instructed by international law firms and other professional service providers such as major accountancy firms to coordinate and manage recovery teams in Asia as a part of a worldwide recovery. We also experienced in providing legal services relating to the investigation of public corruption, bribery and foreign corrupt practices in Hong Kong and overseas.
Services
- Mareva (“freezing”) injunctions
- Third party and disclosure orders
- Tracing, freezing and recovering stolen/misappropriated assets
- Anton Piller “search and seize” orders
- Forensic investigations relating to corporate/public corruption
- Suspicious Transaction Reporting
Experience
- Acted for two major international banks involved in a multi-million dollar arbitration involving the fraudulent transfer of funds between a UK-based private equity firm and a well-known hospitality group in China
- Acted for three private banks in Guernsey, Switzerland and Singapore involved in complex and sophisticated identity theft fraud
- Acted for client involved in an alleged fraud made in trading high value artwork to the value of approximately US$2bn
- Acting for the liquidators (KPMG) of China City Construction (International) Co., Limited, a substantial construction company which collapsed following default of billions of RMB worth of bonds, including conspiracy and fraud claims following the surreptitous sale of valuable commercial real estate in Miami and the subsequent dissipation of the proceeds of sale (over USD100 million)
- Acting for a German headquartered conglomorate which fell vicitm to a sophisiticated AI fraud resulting in circa. USD60 million being sent to accounts in Hong Kong, the USA, Singapore and Europe. To date recoveries amount to USD10 million against over 100 defendants with a further USD25 million frozen because of urgent injunctive and disclosure relief
- Acting for PwC as the Joint Provisional Liquidators appointed for Hong Kong-listed company Natural Diary (NZ) Holdings Ltd over large-scale fraud allegations worth USD 425 million
- Acted for a Swedish-based listed company in multi-million-dollar internet identity theft fraud with proceeds laundered in Hong Kong and China
- Acted for the plaintiff in an apparent fraud through an offshore fund regarding pre-IPO shares in an international media company
- Acted for the former director of a Hong Kong subsidiary of a building materials and construction company listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange alleged to have caused substantial losses through breach of duty via a carousel fraud in Romania
- Conduct of an unusual and complicated action in retrover and detinue, successfully recovered a high-value stolen watch which was discovered on sale at well-known auction house Sotheby’s following a burglary at the client’s home in England
- Through a series of injunctions and disclosure orders, successfully traced and secured US$2.5 million of monies which were stolen from a speciality US law firm which had been the victim of identity fraud
- Instructed by the liquidators of an Irish bank in a multi-jurisdictional tracing and recovery exercise seeking recovery of EUR2.5 billion through proceedings in Ireland, Russia, India, Switzerland, Dubai and Hong Kong
- Instructed by Grant MacEwan University in the tracing and recovery of CA$11.8 million misappropriated through cyber fraud through coordinated action in Hong Kong and Canada
- Assisted liquidators of a UK technology company in recovery of £35 million due to HMRC through obtaining injunctions and disclosure orders in aid of overseas proceedings
- Acted on behalf of a major Hong Kong-listed telecoms company in investigating a HK$17 million employee fraud
- Assisting Russian clients in the recovery of approximately US$17 million paid to facilitate the release from the Russian prison of a Russian businessman. Action to date includes two levels of disclosure orders and one of Mareva Injunctions
Accolades/Testimonials
Awards and Rankings
Who’s Who Legal (WWL) 2023
- Ian De Witt ranked as Global Elite Thought Leader under Asset Recovery
- Jeff Lane is ranked as Global Elite Thought Leader under Asset Recovery
- Jeff is also ranked as a Global Elite Thought Leader in the WWL Thought Leaders Global Elite Asset Recovery Guide 2023
- Robin Darton and Pamela Mak are also recommended as Global Leaders
Who’s Who Legal 2022
- Leading Hong Kong law firm in the field of Asset Recovery
- Jeff Lane was awarded as the only onshore lawyer listed as a Global Elite Thought Leader in Hong Kong
Who’s Who Legal 2020
- Ian De Witt, Robin Darton, and Jeff Lane are named to the 2020 edition of Who’s Who Legal as Global Thought Leaders in Asset Recovery
Insights and News
Insights
Directors guilty of fraudulent trading
Insights
The Court of Final Appeal upholds the lawfulness of the “Letter of No Consent” Regime
News
Five Tanner De Witt partners once again ranked in the 2023 edition of Who’s Who Legal (WWL)
Insights
A relief to victims of fraud: Hong Kong Court of Appeal restores the “Letter of No Consent” regime
News