Arguments Against Mandatory Reporting

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Mandatory reporting which was previously confined to jurisdictions involved in drug trafficking and / or terrorist activity has now been extended to all serious crimes in most jurisdictions. An offence is committed when an employee forms suspicion of a customer is engaged in or has benefited from a serious criminal activity and fails to make a SAR / STR. The motivation for making this mandatory reporting is for the avoidance of commission of an offence of failing to report.

The duty of confidentiality owned to a client is impacted by the duty to report knowledge or suspicion of money laundering related to a client. The professional duty to protect client’s confidential details is very crucial but overlooked or undervalued. Different statutes …show more content…

When a report is made, such report is not to be taken to breach any restriction on the disclosure of information. Good faith is essential ingredient to such protection. If a report is made in bad faith, without any justification, it constitute a breach of the subjects’ right to confidentiality and is actionable in civil courts.

Recommendation 21(a) of FATF requires that:

Financial institutions, their directors, officers and employees should be protected by law from criminal and civil liability for breach of any restriction on disclosure of information imposed by contract or by any legislation, regulatory or administrative provision, if they report their suspicions in good faith to the FIU, even if they did not know precisely what the underlying criminal activity was, and regardless of whether illegal activity actually occurred.

The Proceeds of Crime Act requires the regulated sector to obtain consent from National Crime Agency (NCA) to undertake future activity of a customer that may constitute a prohibited act. It can a customer withdrawing funds which the institution suspects are proceeds of crime. If suspicion is reported before the transaction, it is an offence for the institution or nominated officer to permit the transaction to proceed without the consent of

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