The session will bring together practitioners and experts in operational and policy work involving asset recovery, which has a significant impact on the availability of domestic resources for development. The session will focus on presenting innovative legal mechanisms at two crucial stages of the asset recovery process.

First, the discussion will provide an overview of asset recovery and return based on the StAR Asset Recovery Watch database, then touch on the asset-tracing and investigation stages, including on Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs) and their application in the United Kingdom as a concrete example, as well as in other tools. Then the session will address the proceeds recovery stage, focusing on the return of criminal proceeds to victim countries through two main channels: (i) the use of civil remedies for direct asset recovery with examples from Brazil and the G20, and (ii) cross-border cooperation through International Organizations (IOs), highlighting the experience of Nigeria.

Participants will gain a deeper understanding of the legal tools currently used in domestic anti-corruption frameworks and international cooperation, as well as how IOs can support and collaborate with countries seeking the return of stolen assets.  

Speakers:

Lucio Alves Angelo, State Attorney, Deputy Coordinator of the Foreign Litigation Unit, Attorney General’s Office, Brazil

Elsa Gopala Krishnan, Liason, Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative, World Bank Group-UN Office on Drugs and Crime

Selimat Lawal, Deputy Head of Asset Recovery and Management Unit, Federal Ministry of Justice, Nigeria

Yasmin Pither, Senior Policy Advisor on International Asset Recovery, United Kingtom Home Office

Moderator:

Frank Fariello, Former Lead Counsel (ret.), World Bank Group

Return to the main LJD Week event website here.