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Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

panamapapers.sueddeutsche.de

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Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#31

Post by ratsmack »

hendler wrote: post #25
retrogradeorbit wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't expect to hear much on that front: https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2016/04/corporate-me...

Editor says there may be some: https://twitter.com/ploechinger/status/716773530436825088 https://twitter.com/ploechinger/status/716763595820941312 Also, I hope journalists are asking the "accused" for their comments, and giving them time to respond, as journalistic best practice.

"Some" really isn't good enough. From what I've been able to put together, the whole thing seems choreographed if not outright rigged. Why is it that Putin and Assad seem to be the only targets with the initial release?

I will have a hard time believing any of the reporting until the raw data is released.

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#32

Post by ixtli »

usaphp wrote: post #29

Can someone explain me if reading these documents is even legal for journalists? I mean I am pretty sure most of the people that used that law office are completely innocent and having their personal information leaked and now read and investigated by some journalists is kind of crime in its own, I would not want my legal papers stolen and read by anybody if I am doing everything according to the law. My question is…

I am not a lawyer, but as far as I know there is no US law that makes it illegal for a civilian to see something. It's important, though, that if you have a security clearance you can be fired or put in jail for reading something outside of your clearance but those laws don't apply to normal people.

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#33

Post by tomlock »

sebiche wrote: post #27
tomlock wrote: post #9

Is it just me or is this expose surprisingly low on American citizens? Is this one of the times when conspiracy theory could be conspiracy fact? It feels like this is an extremely selective release.

From the Reddit live thread: The Editor in Chief of Süddeutsche Zeitung responded to the lack of United States individuals in the documents, saying to "Just wait for what is coming next".

Good news :)

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#34

Post by gareim »

usaphp wrote: post #29

Can someone explain me if reading these documents is even legal for journalists? I mean I am pretty sure most of the people that used that law office are completely innocent and having their personal information leaked and now read and investigated by some journalists is kind of crime in its own, I would not want my legal papers stolen and read by anybody if I am doing everything according to the law. My question is…

It's not illegal. You reserve rights that are not explicitly taken away.

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#36

Post by akanet »

usaphp wrote: post #29

Can someone explain me if reading these documents is even legal for journalists? I mean I am pretty sure most of the people that used that law office are completely innocent and having their personal information leaked and now read and investigated by some journalists is kind of crime in its own, I would not want my legal papers stolen and read by anybody if I am doing everything according to the law. My question is…

A few things to consider when evaluating the morality of this leak:

1. I can assure you that the majority of people purchasing services from Mossack Fonseca are not "completely innocent".

2. There is firm precedent for the legality of whistleblowing when you believe there to be crimes occurring.

3. "Who owns a business" is not generally considered to be a highly protected class of information, and that's mostly what the data in the leak is about. It's generally about board structure and ownership of various shell companies.

4. Only in Panama (and a few other countries) is business ownership information considered to be "confidential" information.

But to answer your direct question - what legal right do these journalists have? I believe they have the same legal right all citizens do: the right to know if our leaders are committing crimes secretly.

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#38

Post by ixtli »

ixtli wrote: post #32
usaphp wrote: post #29

Can someone explain me if reading these documents is even legal for journalists? I mean I am pretty sure most of the people that used that law office are completely innocent and having their personal information leaked and now read and investigated by some journalists is kind of crime in its own, I would not want my legal papers stolen and read by anybody if I am doing everything according to the law. My question is…

I am not a lawyer, but as far as I know there is no US law that makes it illegal for a civilian to see something. It's important, though, that if you have a security clearance you can be fired or put in jail for reading something outside of your clearance but those laws don't apply to normal people.

It's unclear why my response is getting downvoted when other people are giving normative answers to a legal question.

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#39

Post by seanmcdirmid »

usaphp wrote: post #29

Can someone explain me if reading these documents is even legal for journalists? I mean I am pretty sure most of the people that used that law office are completely innocent and having their personal information leaked and now read and investigated by some journalists is kind of crime in its own, I would not want my legal papers stolen and read by anybody if I am doing everything according to the law. My question is…

The leak occurred in Panama. It might have something to do with Panamanian laws, but there are no international laws regarding the use of leaked data as far as I know. It isn't a crime against humanity.

Re: Panama Papers - 2.6TB leak on offshore tax havens

#40

Post by noahbradley »

tomlock wrote: post #9

Is it just me or is this expose surprisingly low on American citizens? Is this one of the times when conspiracy theory could be conspiracy fact? It feels like this is an extremely selective release.

Or perhaps Americans have a different organization they go to when they want to form shell companies.
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