Switzerland: How Polanski could be the Slippery Slope from Tax Haven to Judiciary Haven Designation

"Wenn I numme wüsst ..."

A Swiss friend corrects me on my former post. Polanski bought his property in 2006 only, though he vacationed for years in Switzerland. Please see this article in Neue Zürcher Zeitung, NZZ Online (in German):

http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/schweiz/bund_hat_polanskis_hauskauf_in_gstaad_bewilligt_1.3780141.html

Funny thing is, Polanski had been on an international arrest warrant for 6 months already, when on April 28, 2006 he acquired property at Chalet "Milky Way" in Gstaad, Switzerland, registered under # 4466-2 and assessed at CHF 1,600,000. The market value is supposed to be much higher.

Not only was there at the time an international arrest warrant. The cantonal economic offices and the Federal Justice Department both gave their written consent to the transaction, as required by Swiss law for foreigners buying property in Switzerland, to French-Polish national Roman Raymond Polanski-Seigner. Swiss officials assert that the law does not require them to do any background checks.

Obviously this story again verifies the equation: tax haven = judiciary haven = regulatory haven.

It just turns water on the mill of those who will pursue the next crusade against judicial havens. Switzerland will be on someone's soon to come list of judicial and regulatory havens, though not alone. Luxembourg will be there too, among all the other usual suspects. That prediction is easy to verify: just follow certain legislation being incubated at the US Congress, under Congressman Barney Frank's Committee.

NZZ rather impatiently raises the question: in our Administration, doesn't the left hand know what the right hand is doing? If there is an arrest warrant in the left hand, shouldn't the right hand deny the required approval, or better, proceed to arrest the prospective buyer, right there?

The official answer is "no". There is no requirement that would provide an obligation for the left hand to know what the right hand is doing. Good answer, but that was close!

Imagine the answer had been "yes"! Then proof would be there that Switzerland is really a judiciary haven! You could easily surmise that Polanski was left alone for so many years, because he was rich and famous. Polanski's sudden arrest then by the left hand had to be somewhat linked to the right hand's trouble with UBS in the US, another sign of judicial despotism . Luckily, we are assured now by the Administration that it isn't so. One has nothing to do with the other.

Careful though with those assurances. They make both hands willfully blind by design, another definition of a judicial and regulatory haven. Switzerland, you cannot win the argument.