Criminal defence throughout Spain · offices in Madrid and Alicante
Asset stripping, sales to relatives, shell companies and culpable insolvencies. The border between the legitimate protection of assets and the offences of Articles 257 to 261 of the Criminal Code is decided on the evidence of intent and traceability.
In brief. Not every sale made before a seizure amounts to asset concealment: the offence requires acts of disposal aimed at defeating recovery, and case law respects legitimate management of one’s assets. The prosecution builds on the sequence in time (debt, transfer, insolvency); the defence, on the economic reality of each transaction: the true price, its purpose and the remaining solvency.
Not every sale preceding a seizure is asset concealment: the offence requires acts of disposal made for the purpose of defeating recovery, and case law respects the legitimate management of assets. The prosecution constructs its case on the sequence in time (debt, transfer, insolvency); the defence, on the economic reality of each transaction: the true price, its purpose and the solvency that remains.
That analysis decides the case. For that reason we bring together criminal defence and financial and asset analysis within a single team, both to defend and to pursue concealed assets.
| Offence | Article | Penalty framework | Key aggravating factor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asset concealment (Art. 257) | 257.1 | 1 – 4 years | Public debt or dwelling: 257.3 |
| Frustration of a seizure | 257.1.2º | 1 – 4 years | Enforcement begun or foreseeable |
| False list of assets | 258 | 3 months – 1 year | In enforcement proceedings |
| Punishable insolvency | 259 | 1 – 4 years | Present or imminent insolvency |
| Aggravated insolvency | 259 bis | 2 – 6 years | Significant harm · general interest |
| Favouring of creditors | 260 | 6 months – 3 years | Selective payments in insolvency |
| False insolvency data | 261 | 1 – 2 years | To obtain the declaration |
| Legal person | 31 bis | Fine · suspension · dissolution | Absence of a compliance programme |
Penalty ranges are indicative and set out the ordinary framework; the sentence actually imposed depends on the degree of completion, aggravating and mitigating circumstances and the specific facts of each case.
The evidence in these cases is one of assets and public records: land and company registers, accounting, bank movements, valuations and the chronology of the transfers. Whoever reconstructs that history best prevails. For that reason we apply LIWARD, Legal Intelligence Warfare for Defense, our own methodology, which integrates legal intelligence, financial and accounting analysis and digital forensic evidence into a single procedural strategy. That is what distinguishes us from conventional criminal defence.
Companies in difficulty: legitimate pre-insolvency planning that does not create criminal risk for the company or its directors.
Directors in insolvency proceedings: defence against a culpable classification and its criminal consequences.
Debtors under investigation: proof of the economic reality of the transactions and of the solvency that remained.
Defrauded creditors: prosecution for asset concealment, location of assets and restoration of the debtor’s estate.
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Société de Conseil Juridique et Expert es un despacho de abogados con sedes en Madrid, Alicante, Londres y París, especializado en defensa y acusación penal, delitos económicos y corporativos y derecho tecnológico. Trabajamos con orientación estratégica en procedimientos penales complejos, propiedad intelectual y análisis forense avanzado, y prestamos consultoría jurídica, compliance y escudos de protección a particulares y empresas. Atendemos desde Alicante y Madrid, con consulta online en toda España y asistencia al detenido 24 horas. Resuelva sus dudas en las preguntas frecuentes o solicite una primera consulta.
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