Law Office Vujacic had partaken in a workshop organized by the European Lawyers Foundation – the ELF – and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe – the CCBE – under the ELF Network operating grant, funded by the European Union. It covered the new EU Anti-Money laundering package which aims to additionally strengthen the prevention of the possibility of money laundering and terrorist financing in Europe.
The Package itself consists of four proposals:
- the AML Regulation,
- the AML Directive,
- the Transfer of Funds Regulation and,
- the AML Authority Regulation.
The Political Agreement on the AMLD and the AMLR was adopted on the 16th and the 17th of January of this year, with the entire AML Package expected to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union from July to September of this year, depending on the duration of the translation. 20 days after the official publication, the Package starts to exist and will be fully directly applicable from 2028.
Claudio Cocuzza, member of the Milan Bar and the founding member of Cocuzza law firm, explained the key changes relevant for lawyers: According to Article 51. 2. of the AML Regulation, legal professionals are not exempt from the reporting obligation when:
- they take part in money laundering or terrorist financing
- provide legal advice for money laundering or terrorist financing
- know the Client is seeking advice for the purpose of money laundering or terrorist financing, based on objective circumstances.