Asset Recovery Specialists
Insolvency Practitioners
Intelligence Gatherers
Litigators
Claimants
Funders & Investors
Regulators & Law Enforcement
Risk Managers
Financial & Professional Service Providers
Fact-Finders
Researchers
Journalists
Alex leads the contentious insolvency and asset recovery team at Stewarts, focusing on disputes arising from distressed and insolvent situations, often involving allegations of breach of duty, fraud, and dishonesty. Alex focuses on maximizing returns to his clients and recovering substantial assets quickly and efficiently. Alex has recently represented liquidators in a claim for over $450m against an offshore bank and its former owner, relating to suspected widescale tax frauds affecting numerous insolvent entities.
Arnoldo (Arnie) Lacayo, a shareholder at Sequor Law, focuses his international litigation practice on financial fraud, asset recovery and cross-border insolvency. He has experience litigating complex disputes in both state and federal courts and has represented multi-national corporations, sovereign governments, Receivers, Trustees and other foreign officeholders in matters pending in U.S. Courts. Arnie regularly supervises transnational investigations and has instructed counsel in dozens of jurisdictions. He also has extensive experience working with the versatile 28 U.S.C. § 1782 discovery statute and Chapter 15 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
Published cases in which Arnie has participated include: In Re Massa Falida do Banco Cruzeiro do Sul, S.A., 567 B.R. 212 (Bankr. S.D. Fla. 2017) (affirming right of Chapter 15 foreign representative to assert state law fraudulent conveyance claims or other avoidance actions); Application of Consorcio Ecuatoriano de Telecomunicaciones S.A. v. JAS Forwarding (USA), Inc., 747 F.3d 1262 (11th Cir. 2014) (affirming the applicability of the 28 U.S.C. § 1782 discovery statute in support of contemplated foreign proceedings); In re Sociedad Militar Seguro de Vida, 985 F.Supp.2d 1375 (N.D. Ga. 2013) (granting 28 U.S.C. § 1782 assistance in support of litigation pending in Curaçao); and Sallah v. Worldwide Clearing, LLC, et al., 2011 WL 5914034 (S.D. Fla. Nov. 28, 2011) (order denying various motions to dismiss fraudulent transfers and unjust enrichment claims by Receiver).
In addition to being named a “Super Lawyer” by the publication Super Lawyers, Arnie’s recent speaking engagements include: Florida International University College of Law lecture for course titled El Derecho en Estados Unidos: Aspectos Fundamentales, Litigios y Arbitraje Internacional (Miami, Florida, August 2018); C5’s Fraud, Asset Tracing and Recovery Conference, Trouble in Paradise: Everything You Need to Know About Beneficial Ownership, Transparency and Disclosure (Geneva, Switzerland, March 2018); the AIJA 2016 Half Year Conference, Concrete Risks – Corruption and Money Laundering in the Acquisition and Construction of Real Estate (Chicago, Illinois, May 2016). Arnie has also contributed to or co-authored various papers and chapters, including the United States Chapter in The FraudNet World Compendium on Asset Tracing and Recovery.
Arnie is an active member of the Florida Bar’s International Law Section where he recently concluded his year as Chair of the one-thousand member-plus organization and where he continues to serve as a member of the Executive Council. He is also active with the International Association of Young Lawyers (AIJA) where he currently serves as President of the Litigation Commission.
As a native Spanish speaker, prior to settling in South Florida, Arnie lived and studied in Latin America. He is a cum laude graduate of the University of Miami School of Law. As the Articles and Comments Editor for the University of Miami Inter-American Law Review, he authored Seeking a Balance: International Pharmaceutical Patent Protection, Public Health Crises and The Emerging Threat of Bio-Terrorism, 33 U. Miami Inter-Am. L. Rev. 295 (2002), for which he received the 2003 Burton Award for Legal Achievement, an award presented annually by the Burton Foundation in association with the Library of Congress. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, where he double majored in Psychology and History. He also completed a Concentration in Latin American Studies while at Notre Dame.
Arnie is admitted to all Florida state courts, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, the District Courts for the Southern and Middle Districts of Florida and the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Basem Ayash is a technologist, entrepreneur, and security expert, specializing in application security, cybercrime, and cyber intelligence. As Chief Technology Officer, Chief System Architect and Head of Information Security, Basem leads the software development of numerous enterprise products and the security consulting services. He is CISSP-certified, ethical hacker-certified, and a licensed penetration tester with background experience in operating system development and device drivers.
Basem has in-depth technical knowledge of security at all levels, ranging from network, operating systems, applications, and data levels. Over the last 10 years, he has provided cyber security training and consultancy services to various GCC government clients (including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, etc.), helping them in the design and implementation of their network and cyber security infrastructure.
Basem has worked with major GCC government and private organizations for over 24 years and now leads his companies as one of the most prominent solution providers. Prior to that, he healed technical positions at leading technology companies such as Compaq Computer and Xerox.
Basem is the co-founder of aiNTEL, Indafo and the founder of Akrebeia LLC (USA) and Softech (Software Technology Solutions, Lebanon), and the co- founder of ZFP-IT (Tasheel Information Technology, KSA) and Creative Technology Systems CTS (India). He is responsible for overseeing the operation and business growth of these companies, which have played a major role in their respective industries, delivering world class services and products to clients across different sectors.
Glenn Pomerantz is a BDO partner with over 35 years of forensic accounting, auditing and consulting experience and leads BDO’s Global Forensic Practice. Mr. Pomerantz is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner specializing in fraud investigations, compliance and due diligence as well as domestic and international dispute resolution.
Mr. Pomerantz leads forensic accounting engagements in the United States and globally where he has built and maintains a network of over 100 BDO member firms performing forensic engagements in a seamless manner.
Mr. Pomerantz provides expert witness testimony in the form of economic damage quantification and analyses including lost profit opinions. He has testified in approximately 100 matters over his 35-year tenure across numerous industries and venues.
He is recognized in “Who’s Who Legal” under Investigations Forensic Accountants and Consulting Experts Forensic Accountants.
Haydn Jones is a managing director in the Data Insights and Forensics practice, based in London. Haydn leverages more than 25 years’ experience across multiple sectors leading sales and business development and is now exclusively focused on cryptocurrencies and blockchain.
Prior to joining Kroll, Haydn served as a director at PwC, leading the UK Crypto and Blockchain team. He was responsible for sales and business development working across PwC’s lines of service, supporting audit, assurance, tax, deals and consulting. Before that, he was the founder and managing director for Blockchain Hub, a blockchain and digital currencies advisory company. Haydn has also held positions at The Bank of England, Deutsche Bank and the UK Ministry of Defence.
He is a director of various business groups.
Michelle Estlund is the founder and principal attorney of Estlund Law, P.A., located in Miami, Florida. Her practice focuses exclusively on criminal and INTERPOL defense cases, with an emphasis on the exposure of human rights violations and politically motivated and corrupt prosecutions. The majority of the charges faced by her clients are “white collar,” or financial crimes.
She regularly advises international journalists, human rights organizations, and other attorneys on issues related to INTERPOL. Ms. Estlund has successfully represented numerous Red Notice subjects before INTERPOL, as well as having Red Notices modified or corrected. She has also achieved the removal of Yellow Notices for minors who were invalidly listed as missing or kidnapped. She writes extensively about INTERPOL matters on her blog, the Red Notice Law Journal, found at www.rednoticelawjournal.com.
Representative Matters
Publications
Speaking Engagements
Red Notices and the INTERPOL Wanted List: Balancing Law Enforcement with Due Process
Expert/professional services
Ms. Estlund has provided expert testimony or professional support on INTERPOL matters for the following organizations:
Al Jazeera Ankara Anatolia news agency Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Channel 4 Dispatches/U.K. Fair Trials, International Foreign Policy Freie Presse The Guardian The Heritage Foundation I24/News | The Miami Herald MSNBC.com National Geographic National Public Radio Open Dialog Foundation TCI News Now Thomson Reuters New York Times The Atlantic The Times of London |
Ms. Estlund has provided expert testimony in cases such as the following:
International criminal proceedings
Domestic immigration proceedings
Licenses, Awards, and Professional Memberships
Licensed to practice in Florida, Federal District Court for the Southern and Northern Districts of Florida.
Awards/recognitions/professional distinctions:
Education and Background
Founder and principal attorney, Estlund Law, P.A., 2006
Assistant Public Defender, Eleventh Judicial Circuit Public Defender’s Office, 1997-2006
Adjunct instructor, Legal Research, Florida International University, 1998-2002.
Legislative intern, Florida House of Representative’s Criminal Justice Committee 1993-1994
Student law clerk, Middle District of Florida, Judge Elizabeth Kovachevich, 1995
J.D., Stetson University College of Law
B.A., Florida State University, majors in Psychology and Criminology
Contact
mestlund@estlundlaw.com www.rednoticelawjournal.com
Estlund Law, P.A., 147 Sevilla Avenue, Coral Gables, FL 33134, Tel: 305.448.0077.
Nathan Shaheen is a lawyer specializing in financial crimes, anti-money laundering and complex commercial litigation. He combines technical legal expertise with a practical focus on his clients’ business objectives.
Nicosia Lawson is a Senior Associate at Baker & Partners which has offices in the Cayman Islands, Jersey, London, and the BVI. Nicosia is a Cayman Islands attorney and has practiced as a foreign registered lawyer in Hong Kong. Her areas of focus are civil fraud and asset recovery, cross-border insolvency, and restructuring. Nicosia’s most recent experience include working on prominent cases like the 1Malaysia Development Berhad Fund (“1MDB”) matter which involves the recovery of billions of dollars stolen from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund. Nicosia has also represented the petitioning creditors of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange, AAX, a case which resulted in the first published cryptocurrency specific court decision in the Cayman Islands. In 2022 Nicosia was shortlisted for the ‘Next Gen of the Year’ award by the Recovery and Insolvency Specialists Association (Cayman).
Noy Moshe is a Manager of Investigations at Chainalysis, where she leads investigative efforts across the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean. Prior to joining Chainalysis, Noy spent 8 years in the public sector, investigating cybercriminal networks, conducting open-source intelligence analysis, and leading communications strategies.
Among her various positions, Noy served as a Senior Officer at The Embassy of Israel in London, Analyst in the Israeli Prime Minister Office and the Israel Defence Forces.
Noy specializes in in counter-terrorism and is a certified cryptocurrency investigations specialist.
Paul spent his career as a journalist reporting both domestically and internationally for a variety of news organizations and publications.
His investigations have uncovered fraud, corruption, and malfeasance at the highest levels of business and government. As a professional investigator, Paul assists leading litigators, investors and corporate decision-makers in gathering critical facts and intelligence and finding hidden evidence and assets in the context of high-stakes and complex disputes, due diligence, and internal investigations.
A former National Press Foundation fellow, Paul has appeared on CNN and been published by The New York Times, National Journal, USA Today, The St. Petersburg Times, The Miami Herald, The Palm Beach Post, Washingtonian Magazine, Salon, and others. He received a B.A. in English from the University of Virginia, where he was an Echols Scholar.
Septimus is a Director at S-RM. He specialises in gathering intelligence to support complex, multijurisdictional disputes globally. His clients include government agencies, global corporations, leading business figures and family offices. He regularly works in, and helps assemble, multidisciplinary teams comprising outside counsel, funders, expert witnesses, communications experts, digital forensics investigators and cyber practitioners.
Since 2021, Septimus has been recognised by Chambers & Partners as one of the UK’s leading corporate investigators. Clients have praised him for his “incredible networks on the ground”, “ability to deliver game-changing intelligence” and “consistently high-quality, thoughtful service”.
Septimus has wide-ranging experience of gathering intelligence and evidence in the most challenging environments, using a combination of OSINT, human intelligence, eDiscovery and digital forensics. He works across EMEA, APAC and the Former Soviet Union. He has particular expertise in disputes involving parties from the Former Soviet Union and regularly supports clients in contentious situations relating to the region. Recently, he has advised numerous businesses affected by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, particularly in the insurance sector. Septimus’ work has been used to support litigation and arbitration relating to JV disputes, sanctions, fraud, asset recovery, ESG issues, contentious insurance claims and investor-state disputes. He has also managed internal investigations into employee misconduct, IP theft and insider threats.
His analysis of current affairs has been published by the Financial Times, Newsweek, the World Economic Forum, BNE IntelliNews and the Moscow Times. Septimus has also appeared on Bloomberg Daybreak: Europe to discuss the commercial impacts of the War in Ukraine. He has a BA in Russian Studies from University College London and speaks Russian.
Thomas Eymond-Laritaz is the Founder & CEO of Highgate, a strategic advisory firm expert in dispute resolution and special situations. Thomas has advised more than a dozen Presidents and Prime Ministers, and numerous CEOs and ultra-high net worth individuals throughout the world.
Thomas started his career as a French civil servant and worked for the French Prime Minister’s office in Paris. He then served as senior political adviser to the Bulgarian Prime Minister in Sofia and to the Georgian President in Tbilisi. He worked for five years in Kyiv as Chief of Staff to Victor Pinchuk, one of Ukraine’s most prominent investors. Before setting up Highgate, Thomas served as Managing Director at Mercury and Executive Director at APCO Worldwide in London.
Thomas is a French and British citizen. He graduated from the Ecole des Mines de Paris and the Corps des Mines.
In this session, the FTX crypto group's onshore and offshore insolvency administrators will discuss the hard-fought battle for jurisdiction between Delaware and The Bahamas and how they eventually overcame their differences, amid costly legal gridlock, to come up with a 'global pooling' settlement.
FTX's Onshore CEO, John J. Ray II, and one of FTX's Offshore Liquidators, Bahamas-based Brian Simms KC, will each discuss the battle from their own perspective, go into the complex legal issues, and talk about the path to resolution.
This session will look at so-called 'Pig Butchering' schemes, which swindle an estimated tens of billions of dollars annually from victims; the human trafficking behind it, and the role of crypto in laundering the proceeds.
Everything you need to know about investigating and recovering crypto legally, professionally, and successfully.
In this session, investigative journalists at the heart of the world's biggest data leaks will discuss their work and what it has revealed about the previously-hidden side of global finance.
This session will look at the attempt by depositors with the Cayman Islands Branch of Silicon Valley Bank to be treated on a par with onshore depositors in terms of their deposits being covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Insurance Corporation.
A lawyer who regularly represents clients wanted by INTERPOL, including a former president of an Ecuadorian bank, a former CIA operative, a director of a Venezuelan financial institution, a former general counsel for a Latin American country's national petroleum company, and a Russian developer, will discuss the abuse of red notices.
This session will look at how to enforce awards and judgments and recover assets in the major Latin America countries.
In this engaging discussion, Tom and Oliver delve into the complexities of handling crises that affect high-profile individuals and affluent clients across international borders.
Drawing from their extensive expertise, both explore strategies for navigating legal and reputational challenges in today's interconnected world. They emphasize the importance of knowledge, experience, and collaboration in addressing the unique issues faced by wealthy and famous individuals. This talk promises insights into crisis management, how intelligence-led investigations drive and support legal strategy, and how admissible evidence drives court outcomes at the highest level, making it a must-attend event for those seeking to understand the dynamics of cross-border crises.
Tom Ajamie is an internationally recognized trial lawyer who has successfully represented clients in complex commercial litigation and arbitration. The authoritative Chambers USA has described Tom as “relentless, energetic and intelligent” and a “hard-working and successful trial lawyer who never quits.” He has handled a number of high-profile cases, including groundbreaking securities and financial cases, cross-border litigation, business contract disputes, and employment issues.
Oliver Laurence is an internationally awarded and recognised investigator who has represented clients in the #MeToo movement, clients who have been subjected to kidnap and political persecution, and clients battling to overcome the challenges of maintaining a strong and positive profile online. In 2018, Oliver was awarded the UK’s Investigator of the Year award for the successful investigation into the release of a UHNW client on death row in Singapore.
Panelists with complementary expertise and knowledge about the highly-specialized world of Offshore Financial Centers will discuss the industry, separate fact from fiction, and answer your questions. Topics will include complex financial products and services, quality of regulatory and legal systems, types of legal structures, international cooperation, evidence-gathering, insolvencies, trends and developments, hits and misses ... nothing is off limits.
Leading international fraud and value recovery specialists will take your questions and discuss emerging and dominant issues that impact your ability to be successful and effective. This session is intended to be informal and interactive and represents an opportunity for you to have your questions answered by experts who have 'been there, seen it, done it'.
This session will look at current developments in the world of whistleblower rewards.
Leading international fraud and value recovery specialists will take your questions and discuss emerging and dominant issues that impact your ability to be successful and effective. This session is intended to be informal and interactive and represents an opportunity for you to have your questions answered by experts who have 'been there, seen it, done it'.
A discussion and demonstration of Internet-based and Artificial Intelligence tools to help you find, monitor, and understand information on targets.
Our panelists will discuss cases that went terribly wrong, why they went wrong, and lessons they learned to prevent them - and you - from making similar mistakes in future cases.
Deploying non-linear solutions outside the courtroom in parallel to the legal proceedings can help turn the tide and win disputes. Identifying and activating pressure points to change the calculus of your opponents is central to success. During this interactive session, gain insights into what it takes to generate leverage and beat stronger adversaries.
This session will look at how dirty tricks and disinformation have been used to destroy businesses and reputations, including examples of campaigns allegedly orchestrated by governments.
In this session, lawyer Tom Ajamie will talk about how his investigation into suspected charity fraud by Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein ultimately led to Weinstein's demise and later imprisonment for sex offenses.
In this session, our panelists will discuss an unanswered question on which billions of dollars ride: Are crypto tokens securities as a matter of law?
In this session, insolvency practitioners, lawyers, and investigators, several of whom are involved in the liquidation of Three Arrows Capital, will discuss how to go about investigating and recovering assets when a global crypto enterprise collapses.
In this session, investigators and attorneys will discuss:
We stand on the cusp of the greatest generational wealth transfer in history. Baby boomers are set to pass more than $68 trillion on to their children. Major intra family disputes involving the succession of portions of this wealth will inevitably erupt. Is this the new frontier for asset recovery professionals? This panel session will look at the challenges facing the victims of high value elder abuse; dishonest breach of trust by a family member against siblings or children; and developing a practice in this area.
In this session, litigation funders and asset recovery attorneys will discuss the latest developments in litigation funding, including legal rulings that affect the industry, how to go about getting your claims funded, and the appetite for funding crypto-related claims.
Some crypto investigators suspect that the collapse of FTX is just the tip of the ice berg in an industry that is rife with fraud.
This session will look at red flags surrounding other crypto schemes, including Binance, Deltec Bank, and, of course, Tether.
Experienced investigator Katie Frodsham discusses the value of human source intelligence (HUMINT) during litigation, through a case study of her infiltration of an extreme cult. Using covert HUMINT techniques and hardware, Katie went undercover in the cult to gather the evidence and intelligence needed to successfully win the case against the cult leader. This is the story of how Katie became a trusted member of the group, eventually going on holiday with them, and becoming the cult leader’s mentee.
In this special, 90-minute, 'everything you need to know about crypto' session, leading crypto investigators, recovery specialists, and proponents will answer all of your questions regarding the crypto industry and offer advise and expertise to increase your chances of success.
Leading international fraud and value recovery specialists will take your questions and discuss emerging and dominant issues that impact your ability to be successful and effective. This session is intended to be informal and interactive and represents an opportunity for you to have your questions answered by experts who have 'been there, seen it, done it'.
In this session, retired FBI Agent Gregory Coleman will discuss how criminals have stolen hundreds of billions of dollars of COVID Relief funds and how the private and public sectors can work together to recover assets.
The presentation will include a case study of one state’s aggressive approach to recovering funds stolen through unemployment insurance fraud.
Leading international fraud and value recovery specialists will take your questions and discuss emerging and dominant issues that impact your ability to be successful and effective. This session is intended to be informal and interactive and represents an opportunity for you to have your questions answered by experts who have 'been there, seen it, done it'.
This session will look at investing in two forms of distressed assets - crypto and sovereign debt.
Thomas Braziel, whose firm, 507 Capital, invested heavily in crypto claims against failed Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox and is now looking to do the same at another insolvent crypto exchange, Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX Group, will discuss investment opportunities in failed crypto ventures.
Jay Newman, a former hedge fund portfolio manager who led one of the most notable hedge fund trades in history - leading to a 15-year fight to recover billions of dollars of defaulted debt from the government of Argentina, will discuss investment opportunities in sovereign debt. Jay is now a novelist, with his debut novel Undermoney, about dark money and global politics, published in 2022.
This session will look at how artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT can be used to enhance investigations and analyze data.
Our final session will look at how Miami has been attempting to become the world's crypto capital and a center for Web3 and AI projects. Capturing the opportunities and addressing challenges associated with these emerging sectors is no easy feat. The City of Miami’s Mayor Francis X. Suarez joining Jeremy Kroll, CEO and Co-Founder of K2 Integrity, for a candid discussion about these important topics.
"It's like that famous bar in 'Star Wars', where they all come together - the good guys, the bad guys, the seriously guilty - and they all exchange information on neutral territory."Jack Blum, financial crime lawyer, Washington, D.C., describing our event in The Wall Street Journal in 2009.