Specialties
Lawyers Specializing in Scams, Panama
Scam specialized lawyers
Your Company has been a victim of a Scam? You want to prevent being a victim of a Scam? You are the victim of a Scam?
Our lawyers specialized in Scams advise and defend the organizations, the business conglomerates, the financial institutions, the state entities, entrepreneurs and people in general which day to day seek to conduct legitimate transactions or business but find bad faith people who abuse their trust. At José María Castillo y Asociados frequently advise individuals and organizations that are victims of Scams.
Remember that it is important that a lawyer specialized in the crime of Scam assists you from the first moment. Our services can be given through a preventive advice when you have doubts about a business transaction or if unfortunately, you have been deprived of your patrimony or rights by means of some deceitful scheme or acting in bad faith.
What is Scam?
With regard to Scam, according to our criminal law, is an act of damage or harm on the property or patrimony of another person. The core of the criminal type of Scam consists of swindle. The active subject of the crime is delivered a patrimonial asset, by means of swindle; that is, making believe the existence of something that does not really exist. The legally protected asset is the patrimony or property.
In colloquial terms, when someone “plays live” from the start. All or part of the relationship that exists between the scammer and his victim, was based on falsehoods, of people, of the object of the business, or of reality in general, with the purpose of seeking a personal benefit at the expense of his victim.
To determine if we are facing a Scam or some other type of claim, it is necessary to study case by case. If you have doubts about being faced with a possible Scam, contact us and we will give you an appointment in our Office in Panama City.
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The Main Regulations ruling the Crime of Scam in Panama
The Criminal Code of the Republic of Panama contains different articles that deal with the crime of Scam and Other Fraud, in its Title VI Crimes against Economic Patrimony, among them Articles 220 and 221:
“Whoever procures or procures for a third party and illicit advantage to the detriment of another by deception will be punished with imprisonment from one to four years. The sanction will be increased up to a third when it is committed abusing personal or professional relationships, or when it is done through a cybernetic or computerized medium.”
“The conduct provided for in the previous article will be sanctioned with imprisonment from five to ten years in the following cases: 1. If the property damage exceeds one hundred thousand balboas (B/. 100.000,00) 2. If it is committed by representatives, managers or administrators in the exercise of their functions. 3. If it is committed to the detriment of the Public Administration or a charitable establishment. 4. If the identity of another person is usurped or used to obtain some benefit.”
This behavior is described based on the intention of deception, whereby the scammer acts with knowledge and with the intention of damaging economic assets. The benefit that is generated is illicit since it was not generated legitimately and the penal system then seeks, in addition to the sentence, compensation to the victim of the patrimony on which he was dispossessed.
It is important to differentiate the Scam from the mere breech of agreements, for this reason it is important to seek advice on the fine print when making contracts or leaving obligations of any kind in writing. Non-compliance is not criminal, but there was an intention to deceive, and neither is it if what was expected to be received was not certain or was actually determined.
For example, in the purchase of a second-hand car, it is not the same for the seller to intentionally hide information as to ignore it, although for the buyer the negative effects are the same, the way of claiming will be different, the first by criminal way, and the second by civil way. Scams are increasingly sophisticated and technological advances allow solutions in terms of commercial transparency but also new ways of deception, which is why it is important to be familiar with and be advised on any relevant transaction.
The tendency to scams and fraud is a sign of informality and lack of development in the economy, which is why there are important efforts to develop legal and commercial practices to reduce these occurrences. These practices are developed with experience and in the private sphere as businesses become standardized and new forms of guarantees, security mechanisms, contractual clauses, among others, appear.
Ideally, you should seek advice from lawyers specializing in Scams to prevent you from being a victim and, if you already are, to discover the entire deception scheme in technical detail and obtain the criminal protection your case deserves.
Frequent questions
What are the Elements of the Crime of Scam?
- An active subject who uses cheating to obtain his goals.
- A deceptive scheme created with intent to set a trap.
- A victim who enters a business in good faith and ends up stripped of her assets.
- The illicit profit resulting from the fraudulent scheme.
What are some of the most common signs of Scam?
- Those committed through promises of money or unrealistic return on investment.
- The excessive pressure to generate disbursements before having guarantees.
- Use confusing language with ambiguous and complicated conditions.
- Resistance to give proof of funds or experience to manage any operation.
- Failure to pay from the first installations, or request extensions without having made any consideration.
- Loosing effective communication with the counterpart.
- Being perceived as a wealthier or more influential person than reality suggests.
- Insist on means of payment such as cash or that seek to avoid bank transactions.
What are the main Institutions or unions to consider in matters of Scam?
- ACODECO – Authority for Consumer Protection and Defense of Competition.
- CoNEP – National Council of Private Enterprise
- CAPAC – Panamanian Chamber of Construction Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture of Panama
- APEDE – Panamanian Association of Business Executives
What is the impact of the Crime of Scam in Panama?
Panama due to its geographical position, tries to be logistics and business center, for which its commercial center depends to a large extent on the good experiences of its users to continue attracting more investment. In this sense, all scam and fraudulent conduct deteriorates this image, which is why it is important to have lawyers who can make the relevant connections between this objective as a country and your case in particular, in order to obtain the greatest institutional support when making your claims.
If you are interested in our services as criminal lawyers or would like to talk to us, we invite you to contact us.
Our criminal lawyers in Panama have extensive experience in defending clients who have been victims of Scams or are mistakenly under investigation or indictment for this crime. Consequently, our in-depth knowledge of litigation allow us to give advice that is not only theoretically correct but addresses all the practical obstacles clients face in everyday business or criminal proceedings.
Through our work we have successfully obtained the claim of claims derived from Scams and the return of a large part of assets dispossessed as part of fraudulent schemes. Similarly, we have given advice to clients so that they take proactive measures that have prevented them from entering into fraudulent relationships, or realizing that they were in one, which allowed fraudsters to distance themselves from their assets in time.