Searches of Business Premises in Germany: What You Should and Should Not Do

Emergency checklist: What to do when the officers arrive?

If officers have arrived at your door, or if you have otherwise been informed of a search at your premises, the following checklist can give you some initial general guidelines on what to do:

1. Demonstrate your willingness to cooperate by remaining friendly and polite. Do not comment on the criminal charge! In general, say as little as possible. You have the right to remain silent. You should exercise this right under all circumstances, as making statements on the case will in no way avert the house search. If at all necessary, only talk to the officers about the procedure of the search. Do not engage in small talk, e.g. where you went on holiday recently, what you do after work, etc. It is not uncommon for such information to be used against you in the further course of preliminary proceedings.
2. Inform the officers that you wish to have a lawyer present during the search and that you wish to make a telephone call for this purpose. Even if the officers have already confiscated your mobile phone, they are not permitted to refuse to allow you to make a phone call to a lawyer of your choice – but you may need to use an officer’s phone. Ask the officers to wait until your lawyer arrives before starting the search. In cases of white-collar crime, our experience is that the officers usually comply with this request. You can contact our criminal defence attorneys at +49 (0)69 76 75 77 80.
3. Ask to see the judicial search warrant. Check whether the warrant is more than six months old, whether it accurately describes the premises to be searched, whether it is signed and which items it refers to. If it is more than six months old, the search warrant may not be enforced. Alert the officers to this fact. However, under no circumstances should you use force to obstruct the search.
4. Ask to see the official ID of the persons conducting the search and, if possible, make copies or write down their names. Ask who the officer in charge is and make sure you write down his or her name, department and telephone number and, if applicable, fax number and email address.
5. Should it not be possible to call in a lawyer or should the officers not wish to wait with the search, you can call in witnesses (employees, neighbours, etc.) to be present during the search and make sure that only the rooms and items specified in the search warrant are searched.
6. Once the search has been completed, ask to be given a protocol of seizure and check that all seized items have been noted correctly. Do not agree to voluntarily hand over the items – the officers will usually ask you to do so. Have the officer in charge of the operation sign the protocol, indicating the date and time. Ask for the search protocol to be given to you. However, this may be written afterwards, so that it cannot be handed over to you immediately.
7. Insist that the confiscated items be sealed. This means that the items are placed in a box and secured with a seal so that the examination of the contents cannot be carried out before a judge has ruled on an appeal against the seizure and search. It is not always possible to actually have the seized items sealed on the premises.
8. After the officers have left, draw up your own protocol of the search process – and have each of the witnesses do the same – in which you record which rooms were searched (by whom) in which order and which items were found/seized in which room.