Pardon Me? Why Your Assets Might Not Be So Lucky

. . . So the government's theory that civil asset forfeiture is "pardon proof" remains untested and unresolved. . . .

I. Introduction

The scope and effect of preemptive presidential pardons has long been a subject of constitutional and legal debate, but recent developments once again have thrust the issue into the national spotlight. At the end of his presidency, President Biden issued a series of preemptive pardons, reigniting discussions about the limits and implications of the executive pardon power. While a presidential pardon eliminates an individual's criminal liability, it leaves unanswered questions about the fate of assets connected to the underlying offense—either as proceeds of the crime or as instrumentalities used in the crime's commission.