“Because taxes are for poor people”
The law firm at the heart of the ‘Panama Papers’ leak now has its own — unofficial — clothing range.
Secretive Panamanian outfit Mossack Fonseca hit headlines earlier this month after a mass data leak revealed how it helped its well-to-do clients avoid tax. And now one company has seized upon the offshore firm’s new found fame to produce some eye-catching T-shirts.
The garments feature the firm’s name and logo, alongside the line:
Because taxes are for poor people
Legal Cheek would like to stress that this is not the firm’s actual strapline.
Currently for sale on San Francisco-based website Redbubble, fans of Mossack Fonseca — or tax avoidance more generally — can purchase their very own little bit of Panama Papers memorabilia for as little as £14.97.
News of the T-shirts comes as the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) confirms that it will contact all UK law firms named in the leaked documents, seeking assurances that they acted in accordance with the rules. City outfits Simmons & Simmons and Holman Fenwick Willan, and Knightsbridge firm Child & Child, have all been linked to Mossack Fonseca, however there is no suggestion that any firm has broken any rules.
Meanwhile, as the saga rumbles on, The Guardian has this morning seized on the fact that the executive chair of HMRC used to be a partner at Simmons & Simmons (but did not personally deal with Mossack Fonseca).
Despite the volumes of negative press coverage, Mossack Fonseca’s founding partner, Ramon Fonseca, maintains the firm has done nothing wrong. Insisting that all of its operations were entirely legal, he suggested the firm had become the focus of a “witch-hunt”.
As for the T-shirts, if you’re in the market for a tax law-themed garment, Legal Cheek suggests that you act quickly. The page is likely to be taken down when the Panamanian lawyers get wind of it.
Previously:
Leaked Mossack Fonseca document leaves London law firm exposed [Legal Cheek]