Key points
- In Australia, organised crime groups are using complex commercial structures to support criminal activity and launder money. This requires organised crime groups to engage the services of professionals such as legal practitioners.
- Legal practitioners can act as an entry point for those seeking to use financial and corporate systems to launder illicit funds.
- Organised crime groups are likely to continue to seek the services of legal practitioners to launder their illicit funds.
Background
The use of legal practitioners to launder illicit funds is an internationally established money laundering method. In Australia, the increasing complexity and sophistication of money laundering schemes has seen organised crime groups seek specialist advice and skills of professionals, such as legal practitioners.
Professionals are known as ‘gatekeepers’ or facilitators because they can act as an entry point for those seeking to misuse legitimate financial systems and corporate structures for money laundering. In this context, legal practitioners provide specialist advice and skills which can be used to launder illicit funds.
In January 2015 it was estimated that approximately 100,039 people and 19,167 businesses were engaged in providing legal services in Australia.(4)