Court Lifts €20 Million Freezing Order Against DF Advocates In Vitals Scandal
A Criminal Court has made a landmark decision in the Vitals case, lifting a €20 million freezing order against DF Advocates.
MaltaToday reported Judge Edwina Grima dismissed the Attorney General’s appeal to convert the temporary freezing order into a permanent one and revoked the order entirely, marking the first time a freezing order in this high-profile case has been overturned.
The Court ruled that “the law firm DF Advocates can never be found guilty of any crime.”
The judgment clarified that criminal guilt requires either a company or a unified body as the accused party. In this instance, DF Advocates does not fall under either category.
The Court identified Jean Carl Farrugia and Kevin Deguara as the judicable persons in question. Should they be found guilty, penalties—pecuniary or otherwise—would be imposed on them individually.
However, DF Advocates, as a legal entity, could never be convicted.
Farrugia and Deguara are among several individuals and companies facing charges related to the Vitals scandal, a controversial deal that saw three state hospitals privatised.
The agreement, championed by former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and his administration, was later deemed null by a court.
This is the first freezing order to be revoked in the ongoing Vitals case.
DF Advocates were represented by lawyers Franco Debono, Jonathan Thompson and Ezekiel Psaila.
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