The government will be publishing new legislation on freezing orders in the coming days, limiting the amount of assets frozen on the amount suspected to have been defrauded, Justice Minister Jonathan Attard said on Monday. 

Currently, someone accused of a financial crime can have most of their property seized by the court. 

The new law aims to proportionalize the assets frozen by the court with the crime someone is being investigated or accused of. 

"Criminal law is punitive, but it should not create an injustice in itself," Attard said.

A bill proposing the changes will be published in the coming days and is set to be debated in parliament soon, the justice minister said. 

The amendments will only affect those suspected and found guilty of financial crime and will not apply to drug trafficking cases, Attard said. 

He said the new bill comes after prolonged consultation with the Attorney General, State Advocate, the Commissioner of Laws and the National Coordinating Committee on Combating Money Laundering. 

Attard said the changes come as the government increasingly looks to prosecute financial crimes. 

Should the new law go through, individuals being investigated or accused of a crime will have the right to request the median wage while their assets are seized.

Currently, individuals with frozen assets can request up to €14,000 annually to cover living expenses.

The court will also be able to allow an accused person to go on with their legitimate business dealings, he said. 

The new law will also allow those suspected of a financial crime to file only one court application when they want to use their frozen assets for recurring expenses. 

Attard said that the court will confiscate property proportional to the crime if someone is found guilty. 

In the last three years, the AG has prosecuted 84 cases involving at least one accusation of money laundering, he said. 

As these cases become more frequent, the law needs an update, he said. 

Attard was speaking beside the Commissioner of Laws, Antonio Mizzi. 

Judge Emeritus Mizzi said that several judges and stakeholders have expressed concern that legislation on freezing orders is too harsh, with some going as far as to describe the law as "draconian".

"As the law stands, we risk breaking our businesses, and breadwinners can end up unemployed," he said. 

He said the bill would also give more rights to third parties whose assets can be caught up in a freezing order.