We advise and defend companies and individuals in the field of criminal law.

Galen Rechtsanwälte is a law firm that is mainly active in the field of law relating to economic crimes. Our origin lies with the belief in socially committed criminal defence. Therefore, we are still involved in general criminal law cases.

Criminal law is the seismograph of a society. Our mission is to keep the level of interference down and to protect our clients from the impact of criminal proceedings within the rule of law.

We advise and defend individuals and companies nationwide and in cross-border cases. We work with a network of colleagues in Germany and abroad which we have built up over many years.

In addition, we advise and assist witnesses in criminal proceedings and committees of inquiry.

Another area of our activity is advising on compliance. With our forensic experience, we see the possibility for the early detection of criminal law issues and the averting of damage and injury to companies and individuals.

We accompany internal corporate criminal investigations and defend companies against sanctions under the German Act on Regulatory Offences. We also act as the internal reporting channel for various companies, such as the Deutsche Bahn AG and KPMG.

Following many years of experience in the professional supervision of lawyers, we represent members of the liberal professions (doctors, lawyers, notaries, accountants, tax consultants) in professional legal procedures and advise on the laws governing the professions.

As Margarete, since a long time, has been committed to the improvement of the legal status of prostitutes, we advise and represent clients regarding the law governing the organisation and practice of prostitution and are involved in policy developments.

Areas of law

Our activity extends in particular to the following areas of law:

Anti-Corruption and Competition Law

Providing benefits to public officials can be punishable as an act of giving bribes or granting benefits, accepting advantages can be punishable as an act of taking bribes or accepting benefits. Granting benefits to private businessmen and women can be punishable as an act of taking and giving bribes in commercial practice.

In addition, there is criminal liability for collusive tendering and there are risks of related anti-trust law fines. Further, the criminal and administrative offences under the Act against Unfair Competition (UWG), such as illegal advertising or the violation of consumers‘ interests, must be considered. The violation of operational and trade secrets can be punishable under the Act on the Protection of Trade (GeschGehG).

Investigations into banking and capital markets criminal law are characterised by an intensive collaboration between the law enforcement authorities and the Federal Institute for the Supervision of Financial Services (BaFin). Advice and defence in banking and capital markets criminal law thus requires particular expertise to generate the required counterbalance to government organisations.

When advising and defending in these areas of anti-corruption and competition law, we also take into account any consequences aside from criminal law itself, such as an entry in the competition register.

Banking and Capital Market Criminal Law

Along with the criminal offences under the German Criminal Code, banking and capital market criminal law also includes criminal and administrative offences under the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG), the German Stock Exchange Act (BörsG), the German Lending Act (KWG), the German Anti-Money Laundering Act (GwG), the German Stock Corporation Act (AktG) and the German Code of Commercial Law (HGB).

Investigations into banking and capital market criminal law are characterised by an intensive collaboration between the law enforcement authorities and the Federal Institute for the Supervision of Financial Services (BaFin). Advice and defence in banking and capital market criminal law thus require particular expertise to generate the required counterbalance to government organisations.

Compliance

Advice on compliance issues within the company helps to prevent criminal and civil liability and to avoid reputational damage. We also advise on complaints of sexual assault or harassment and conduct internal investigations on this topic. Our expertise extends to both, criminal offences and claims under the General Act on Equal Treatment.

Confiscation

With the Act Reforming Asset Recovery in Criminal Proceedings in 2017, the relevance of confiscating the proceeds of crime has increased significantly. The confiscation of proceeds of crime can have economic consequences that are more severe than the impending punishment. It is therefore important to be aware of the possibility of confiscation and to defend against it at an early stage. We defend accused persons against confiscation as well as (third) parties to confiscation.

Criminal Labour Law

Criminal labour law includes numerous rules on fines and criminal offences which can be found dispersed among different legislation, for example offences in connection with illegal employment, the rules on fines and criminal offences of the Act on Combating Clandestine Employment, the Law on Temporary Employment and the Works Constitution Act. The central regulation in the Criminal Code is the offence of withholding wages and salaries.

In such cases a person is not only threatened with punishment but also with substantial arrears payments. For this reason early advice and defence is advisable if the company or sole trader is confronted with looming irregularities in this area.

Criminal Tax Law

When defending against accusations of tax evasion or reckless understatement of tax, we also keep a close eye on the link between criminal tax proceedings and taxation procedures. We provide advice and defence in all areas of criminal tax law. Our activities include voluntary self-disclosure advice. We work closely with tax advisors in terms of general tax law.

Environmental Criminal Law

In addition to the criminal offences under the German Criminal Code (e.g. the pollution of water, soil and air), environmental criminal law includes numerous criminal and administrative offences of related laws. Environmental criminal law is characterised above all by its administrative accessoriness; this means the matter of criminal liability depends, among other things, on whether certain administrative obligations were breached. Special expertise is required here, as the administrative catalogue of obligations regulates at various levels including EU regulations.

Preventative advice is also becoming particularly significant in this field. The aim of such advice is to always identify risks under criminal law and to avert such damages.

Fraud and Embezzlement

Classic offences against property such as embezzlement, fraud, computer fraud, subsidy fraud, capital investment fraud and credit fraud are a frequent subject of investigations relating to economic crimes. Defending against these allegations requires legal expertise and an understanding of the economic context. For complex matters, we work together with auditors, tax advisors and lawyers in other specialist areas.

Insolvency Criminal Law

Insolvency criminal law includes, in particular, the criminal offences of delayed insolvency proceedings and bankruptcy. Criminal offences of withholding wages and salaries, fraud and embezzlement often play a role in company crisis. Insolvencies must be reported to the Public Prosecutor’s Office by the insolvency court, with the effect that investigations into insolvency offences are often initiated. However, with an early defence there is a chance that the investigation proceedings will actually be discontinued before the insolvency proceedings are concluded.

International Criminal Law

International criminal law covers the crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. Accusations under the German Code of Crimes against International Law (VStGB) can, in principle, be prosecuted in Germany although they relate to incidents abroad and have no connection to Germany. A large number of international criminal proceedings have been initiated in Germany, in particular, in connection with the civil war in Syria.

The focus of the investigations is not only on individuals who are alleged to have been involved in a terrorist organisation or an armed conflict, but also on officials of foreign governments. We provide advice and represent individuals and organisations in this field.

International Mutual Assistance and Extradition

Law enforcement is not constrained by national borders. Law enforcement authorities co-operate worldwide on the basis of numerous bilateral and multilateral agreements. We advise and provide defence in all areas of criminal prosecution by German, European and international authorities – including any measures of investigation or arrest warrants.

We defend against extradition requests and measures issued by Interpol (e.g. Red Notice), working together with a network of colleagues abroad, built up over many years.

Law of the Liberal Professions

Special professional regulations apply to members of liberal professions, for example doctors, lawyers, notaries, auditors and tax advisors. We represent members of the liberal professions in professional proceedings and advise on professional queries.

Medical Criminal Law

Criminal law for medical professionals includes, most especially, accusations in connection with medical malpractice, such as personal injury and death resulting from negligence, but also includes accusations of fraud, embezzlement and corruption with regard to the billing of medical services.

We provide advice and defence to doctors, therapists, chemists, hospitals, care institutions, drug and medical product manufacturers in all criminal law and professional law matters.

Money Laundering

The criminal offence of money laundering is complemented by the Anti-Money Laundering Act (GwG). This Act establishes obligations of identification, recording, ascertainment and reporting for numerous business areas. Violations of these obligations can constitute administrative offences. Suspicious Activity Reports on money laundering are often reported to the Public Prosecutor’s Office by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), where they are handled as money laundering investigations.

We provide defence against allegations of money laundering, in particular in connection with Suspicious Activity Reports on money laundering and we advise on the obligations under the GwG.

Parliamentary Inquiry Committees

Parliamentary committees of inquiry have numerous parallels with criminal proceedings. In principle, evidence is taken in accordance with the code of criminal procedure. However, due to the specific rules of federal and state law and the peculiarities in the context of parliamentary government control, the proceedings of parliamentary inquiry committees have their own character. In addition to expertise in criminal procedural law, experience with political processes is indispensable.

We provide advice and assist individuals before federal and state committees of inquiry and we advise the respective institutions concerned. We deal with the frequent threat of media coverage, by working closely with experienced lawyers specialised in media and press law.

Prostitution

Based on Margarete’s many years of experience with the legal challenges for prostitutes and operators of prostitution establishments, we advise and represent our clients in all matters of administrative law. This includes, in particular, public building law and trade law procedures as well as issues relating to the Prostitute Protection Act.

Reporting Offences regarding Business Crime

In the area of corporate criminal law, we defend individuals and companies as well as represent victims (individuals and legal persons) and provide services regarding the report of offences to the Public Prosecutor. In corporate law disputes, it often makes sense to investigate whether criminal offences have been committed by the opposite party.

Reporting offences to the law enforcement authorities can serve to avert damage to the company, to those in charge and to employees and to effectively enforce civil law claims. We provide advice on the advantage and disadvantage of reporting offences and represent victims (individuals and legal persons) at all stages of possible criminal proceedings.

Sexual Harassment and Assault

We provide advice to aggrieved persons of sexual harassment and assault and represent them at all stages of criminal proceedings. We support them in filing criminal charges and represent them as private accessory prosecutors. In cases of sexual harassment in the workplace, we also advise on issues of the General Act on Equal Treatment.

Whistleblowing

With the introduction of the Whistleblower Protection Act (HinSchG), all companies with 50 or more employees are obliged to implement an internal reporting channel for whistleblowers. For some industries, this obligation applies regardless of the number of employees (e.g. investment services enterprises or stock exchange operators). Larger companies (1000 employees or more) must also set up a complaints procedure for human rights and environmental issues in accordance with the Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains (LkSG). Affected persons must have the possibility to contact the company confidentially to draw attention to grievances, violations of the law or risks.

We have many years of experience in whistleblower management and, since the introduction of the Whistleblower Protection Act and the Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chain, have acted as an (outsourced) internal reporting channel for companies in a wide range of industries. We see whistleblowing as an instrument of crime prevention – early detection of issues allows for company-internal clarification, without the involvement of state agencies. In addition, we advise companies on their obligations under the Whistleblower Protection Act and the Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains and review existing compliance systems for necessary adjustments.