– Basma Atwi
On January 4, 2026, the Public Prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, Judge Jamal Al-Hajjar, issued Circular No. 14/R/2026 regarding “Enhancing the Effectiveness of Parallel Financial Investigations in Money Laundering Cases,” which established a detailed procedural framework requiring the judicial police and competent prosecution offices to conduct a parallel financial investigation when certain criteria related to the nature of the crime, its value, and its indicators are met. This circular comes in light of national and international pressure, after evaluations related to the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the action plan that aims to improve the effectiveness of prosecutions and confiscations, so that the fight against money laundering goes beyond merely condemning the criminal act and extends to tracking the proceeds and drying up their sources.
The circular not only confirmed this principle, but also specified numerical and objective criteria that require the start of the parallel financial investigation. In crimes classified as high-risk, such as corruption, drug trafficking, tax evasion, customs smuggling, and terrorism, it is sufficient for the value of the proceeds to exceed thirty thousand US dollars, or for indications of a disproportion between wealth and legitimate income to appear, or for the activity to take place through fictitious companies or associations, for the financial investigation to become a mandatory course. As for crimes not classified as high-risk, the minimum has increased to fifty thousand dollars, with the requirement that there be elements of organization or a cross-border nature. The circular also required writing a clear statement at the beginning of the investigation report stating the existence of a parallel financial investigation under the supervision of the Cassation Public Prosecution, and depositing a special letter with the Office for Combating Financial Crimes and Money Laundering, which reflects the shift of the financial investigation from the field of assessment to the field of semi-automated regulation when the conditions are met.
A competent source explains, “From a legal standpoint, this circular establishes the independence of the crime of money laundering from the original crime, and practically translates the philosophy of Law 44/2015, which considers financial tracking an integral part of criminal work. The crime is no longer measured only by its material and moral elements, but rather by the benefits it generates,” stressing that “confiscating proceeds and seizing assets have become a goal parallel to conviction, and in economic crimes they may even be the goal with the most severe impact.” Deprivation of liberty: This trend is consistent with comparative experiences, as financial prosecution has proven effective in confronting organized crime and corruption, as stripping the offender of profit is often more deterrent than imprisoning him.”
The source points out that “the expansion of financial investigation raises legitimate questions about the balance between effectiveness and guarantees. The criterion of disproportionate wealth to legitimate income is an effective tool, but it requires extreme caution so that the application does not slide into indirectly burdening the suspect with the burden of proving his innocence, in conflict with the presumption of innocence. Also, the precautionary seizure of assets, if prolonged without clear time control, may lead to serious economic damage before a final ruling is issued. The greatest challenge lies in the institutional capacity to implement this expansion without Overburdening the agencies, or turning the financial investigation into a formality that is reproduced in every file without a careful analysis of the feasibility.”
On the other hand, the circular provides important institutional gains, most notably the unification of standards under the supervision of the Public Prosecution Office, strengthening coordination with the Special Investigation Commission and financial institutions, and introducing the culture of systematic financial analysis into the core of criminal work. It also sends a clear message that Lebanese penal policy tends to pursue illicit money as much as it pursues the act, which strengthens the confidence of the international community and reduces impunity for crimes of a financial nature.
It remains that the success of this circular is not measured by the number of open investigations, but rather by the quality of the files that result in deterrent rulings and actual confiscations that respect the principles. Comparative experiences have shown that the effectiveness of the parallel financial investigation is linked to the presence of strict proportionality controls, a clear justification for seizure decisions, periodic judicial review of the procedures, in addition to specialized training for the judicial police in financial and accounting analysis. Without this, expansion may become a burden or a source of human rights controversy.
Circular No. 14/R/2026 constitutes a bold step towards modernizing anti-money laundering mechanisms, but at the same time it places the judiciary before a precise responsibility: to pursue illicit money by the force of law, not by the force of suspicion, and to promote confiscation without affecting the essence of constitutional guarantees. The state that seeks to dry up the sources of crime is required to do so with fair and transparent tools, because the true power of deterrence is not based solely on detention and confiscation, but rather on confidence that power is exercised within the limits of legality and balance.
