Glossary
Administrative confiscation. A non-judicial mechanism for confiscating proceeds of crime or assets used or involved in the commission of an offense. Assets. Assets of every kind, whether corporeal or incorporeal, movable or immovable, tangible or intangible, and legal documents or instruments evidencing title to or interest in such assets.282 The term is used interchangeably with property. Bona fide purchaser. See innocent owner. Civil action. See private law action. Claimant. The party asserting an interest in the asset. This may include a third party, innocent owner, defendant, target, or offender. Commingled assets. Proceeds or instrumentalities of an offense that have been mixed with other assets that may not be proceeds of crime. Confiscation. The permanent deprivation of assets by order of a court or other competent authority.283 The term is used interchangeably with forfeiture. The persons or entities that hold an interest in the specified funds or other assets at the time of the confiscation lose all rights, in principle, to the confiscated funds or other assets.284 Conviction-based confiscation. Describes all forms of confiscation that require the defendant to be convicted of an offense before confiscation proceedings can be initiated and confiscation can take place. Criminal confiscation. See conviction-based confiscation. Defendant. Any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute. Ex parte proceedings. Legal proceedings brought by one person in the absence of, and without representation or notification of, other parties. Financial intelligence unit (FIU). “A central, national agency responsible for receiving, (and as permitted, requesting), analyzing and disseminating to the competent authorities, disclosures of financial information: (i) concerning suspected proceeds of 282. United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), art. 2(e). 283. UNCAC, art. 2(g). See also “Best Practices: Confiscation (Recommendations 3 and 38),” adopted by the plenary of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), February 19, 2010. 284. FATF, “Interpretative Note to Special Recommendation III: Freezing and Confiscating Terrorist Assets,” para. 7(c), http://www.fatf-gafi.org/dataoecd/53/32/34262136.pdf.