Berezovsky vs Abramovich; Deripaska v Cherney are just two of the numerous cases that have appeared in the High Courts of England and Wales in the last few years. For many reasons the High Courts have become a favoured jurisdiction for foreign nationals to conduct their legal battles. Page Group has increasingly been instructed by law firms to assist in these battles, either by providing investigative support to prove an individual’s link to the UK (and thus enable the law firm to serve papers) or identify assets which the plaintiffs can seize.
One method of proving a link to a jurisdiction is conducting a period of observation to show a Subject’s regular movements whether it is going to an office every day, conducting various business meetings or spending time with his/her family. The observation may also help identify other properties/assets linked to the Subject as well as links to a bank (if seen visiting a branch). Given most hide their assets behind nominee offshore companies this is particularly important. However, surveillance/observation is only most effective backed up with a wider investigation, i.e. searching the relevant indices to identify any corporate links, property or other assets such as planes/artwork.
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