Swiss Banks Unite And Fire Back At The Department of Justice

Neutrality is Switzerland’s unwritten motto. This devotion to conflict avoidance kept the Swiss out of two World Wars. The Swiss are known for their diplomacy, hospitality, and the ability to keep a secret. So, it came as a shock when 73 Swiss banks joined ranks to inform the U.S. Department of Justice and the IRS, politely but firmly, that they would not be signing a proposed amnesty deal under FATCA.

The Basic Facts of FATCA

In March of 2010, the Department of Justice and the IRS were given a new enforcement weapon. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has three primary objectives regarding foreign financial institutions:

1. It requires foreign financial institutions to enter into an agreement with the IRS to identify their U.S. personal account holders.

2. It also allows the DOJ to pursue Intergovernmental Agreements with other countries to ensure the requirements of FATCA are followed by foreign financial institutions.

3. Non-compliant foreign financial institutions face a mandatory 30% withholding on payments from U.S.-based financial institutions.

The Back Story

After the passage of FATCA, the Departments of Treasury and Justice wasted no time in testing the range of their new powers. No one needed to be clairvoyant to know Switzerland would be the first target.

You didn’t need a crystal ball to know UBS would be the bank the DOJ would take down first. UBS was forced to turn over the names and information of 4,000 U.S. taxpayers. In order to settle a corporate criminal action for failure to comply, UBS paid a $780 million dollar fine. Many Swiss institutions got the point and came into compliance.

Some traditions, like the secrecy surrounding Swiss banking, die hard. To prove its power to bankers who didn’t comply after UBS, the DOJ next put the full-court press on Switzerland’s oldest bank: Wegelin & Co. It’s not clear whether the DOJ was attempting to wound Wegelin, or if they were going for the kill. The shot proved fatal. Wegelin paid $74 million in fines, restitution and forfeitures, and ceased to do business to avoid criminal liability.

In August of 2013, to avoid further prosecutions, Switzerland signed an agreement in exchange for non-prosecution agreements (NPAs) for banks that have facilitated American tax evasion. In December, 100 Swiss banks joined in the proposed amnesty deal with the DOJ.

The Swiss Grow a Backbone

In September, the DOJ released the terms of the amnesty agreement to the Swiss banks. Seventy-three banks responded in a joint letter saying they would not sign the NPA as proposed.

It appears that the DOJ may have attempted to slide a couple of extra provisions into the non-prosecution agreement, including:

• Cooperate fully with the DOJ, the IRS, and any other domestic or foreign law enforcement agency designated by the DOJ regarding all matters related to the NPA.

• Assist the DOJ or any designated domestic or foreign law enforcement agency in any investigation, prosecution, or civil proceeding arising from or related to the NPA.

• Provide testimony as needed to enable the U.S. to use the information and evidence provided by the bank under the NPA.

• Provide the DOJ all requested information, documents, records, or other tangible evidence, not protected by legal privilege, regarding the covered conduct.

• To retain all records relating to its U.S. cross-border business for a period of 10 years from the NPA’s termination date.

• The agreement also describes the circumstances under which the DOJ may determine that a bank has violated the NPA and may be prosecuted.

The Banks’ objections are fairly simple:

1. Since when does the United States Department of Justice have the authority to make a foreign institution cooperate in investigations by other foreign governments?

2. The fact that the NPA contains language basically saying the DOJ reserves the right to change its mind and prosecute anyway. So, is that really a non-prosecution agreement or a license for a fishing expedition that may lead to prosecution anyway?

Stay tuned. This is going to get interesting.

Original Post By:  Michael DeBlis

As a former public defender, Michael has defended the poor, the forgotten, and the damned against a gov. that has seemingly unlimited resources to investigate and prosecute crimes. He has spent the last six years cutting his teeth on some of the most serious felony cases, obtaining favorable results for his clients. He knows what it’s like to go toe to toe with the government. In an adversarial environment that is akin to trench warfare, Michael has developed a reputation as a fearless litigator.

Michael graduated from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School. He then earned his LLM in International Tax. Michael’s unique background in tax law puts him into an elite category of criminal defense attorneys who specialize in criminal tax defense. His extensive trial experience and solid grounding in all major areas of taxation make him uniquely qualified to handle any white-collar case.

   

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4 comments on “Swiss Banks Unite And Fire Back At The Department of Justice

  • Excellent article. The arrogance of the U.S. government remains out of control. Here’s hoping these banks will stick to their guns.

    • Thanks, Jim. We’ll have to wait and see. However, the U.S. experienced a major setback this week with the acquittal of two ex-bankers who were charged with offshore tax evasion and subsequently acquitted at trial. They were Dr. Baravarian and Raoul Weil. The DOJ’s silence in the wake of these acquittals was deafening.

  • Way to go, Switzerland! Its about time you spoke up and refused to sign the Amnesty Agreement with America. I find it interesting how such a neutral country will make such a bold decision and gets a “backbone.”

    • Tonna:

      I think that the best quote that sums up Swiss banks’ united opposition to the NPA agreement with America comes from the 1976 movie Network: “I’m made as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!” Thanks for weighing in.

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