{
  "id": 19544934,
  "title": "Kommentar: Cum-Ex-Anwalt zahlt dem Staat seine Schulden in 1000 Jahren zurück",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/kommentar-cum-ex-anwalt-zahlt-dem-staat-seine-schulden-in-1000-jahren",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-11T19:28:44.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Handelsblatt",
    "slug": "handelsblatt",
    "url": "https://www.handelsblatt.com/meinung/kommentare/kommentar-cum-ex-anwalt-zahlt-dem-staat-seine-schulden-in-1000-jahren-zurueck/100268763.html"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "In a case that highlights the challenges for Germany's justice system in recovering debts from criminals, former tax lawyer Hanno Berger owes the state 50 million euros in cum-ex transactions. A district court in Bonn convicted the tax attorney in late 2022 with eight years in prison for particularly severe tax evasion. However, the Bonn prosecutor's office has failed to recover even 50,000 euros from Berger in nearly four years. The bulk of the debt is from Berger's pension, from which approximately 1,100 euros are sent to the state coffers each month. Additional amounts include 20,000 euros from a settlement with relatives through ownership papers, and 680 euros for a gold coin. Valuable assets are beyond the reach of the authorities. Berger transferred his house in Ostheim district, complete with a spa and car wash, to relatives. \"That cannot be contested,\" says a spokesman for the prosecutor's office. The helpless justice system The laws lay the blame. Since the 2017 reform of wealth confiscation, the state can also recover assets that criminals have transferred or converted. In Berger's case, this apparently no longer helps.",
  "summary": "Deutschland hat scharfe Gesetze, um Straftätern ihre Beute abzunehmen. Der Fall des Cum-Ex-Anwalts Hanno Berger zeigt, warum der Staat trotzdem fast leer ausgeht.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}