Q COSTA RICA — To prevent drug traffickers from using illicit funds to hire legal defense lawyers, Frente Amplio (FA) party legislator Antonio Trejos Mazariegos introduced a bill requiring proof that the funds used to cover legal fees are legal.
In addition, cash payments could only be used to partially cover legal fees. The proposal allows for cash payments of up to ten base salaries. The base salary for 2026 is ¢462,200, so the proposed limit for cash payments would be ¢4,622,000, equivalent to US$10,100 at the current dollar exchange rate.
From that amount onward, when fees exceed that amount, or when several installments cumulatively reach that limit, subsequent payments must be made by check, electronic transfer, or other means processed by supervised financial institutions that allow for the identification of the payer, the beneficiary, the amount, and the date of the transaction.
Furthermore, the person under investigation, accused, or convicted who makes the payment, or the third party who pays on their behalf, must, when applicable, prove the lawful origin of those funds.
“To seriously combat drug trafficking, it is not enough to seize drugs; we also have to follow the money. Everyone has the right to a defense and to freely choose their lawyer, but that right cannot turn the payment of millions of colones into an area of untraceability for the State,” the legislator stated.
“With this proposal, we are going to cut the tentacles of organized crime in the courts,” the legislator concluded.
The proposal states that the measure would not prevent a person from freely choosing their lawyer, nor would it establish limits on the amount of professional fees. The restriction would only apply to the method of payment once the established limit for cash payments has been reached.
The explanatory memorandum cites as a reference the recommendations of the Grupo de Acción Financiera Internacional (GAFI) — Financial Action Task Force, on non-financial activities and professions considered vulnerable to money laundering, as well as restrictions on the use of cash existing in countries such as Spain, France, Greece and Uruguay.
Additionally, the initiative stipulates that defense attorneys will be required to retain electronic invoices proving services rendered for five years. This period would begin from the date of the last payment related to the professional relationship.
The initiative was presented with the backing of 13 legislators, including all members of the Frente Amplio; four from the ruling PPSO party, including José Miguel Villalobos, a well-known defense attorney for drug traffickers who recently chose to temporarily suspend his law license; and Claudia Dobles, a former presidential candidate, among others.
The bill (file 25.744) must now be assigned to a legislative committee to begin its corresponding process.