If you are a foreign national facing criminal proceedings in Romania, the hardest part is usually not the accusation itself — it is not understanding what is happening, in what order, or what your options are. That is the part I can fix immediately.
I have been a member of the Cluj Bar since 2007 and have worked exclusively in criminal law since 2010. I conduct cases in English: correspondence, explanation of the file, preparation for hearings and strategy. For the official hearings themselves an authorised court interpreter is used, as Romanian law requires.
The cases I handle
Drink and drug driving
Driving under the influence of alcohol or psychoactive substances, driving without a licence, drug possession and trafficking. In these cases the defence is built almost entirely on procedure: when the blood sample was taken, the chain of custody, the retroactive calculation of blood alcohol level.
Financial and tax crime
Tax evasion, money laundering, income from virtual currency, cybercrime. Cases running to thousands of pages, where a counter-expert accounting report and the distinction between a tax debt and criminal intent decide the outcome.
Corruption and abuse of office
Bribery, trading in influence, abuse of office, conflict of interest. Cases investigated by the National Anticorruption Directorate, where the first question is not what the evidence says, but who had the authority to gather it.
Arrest and preventive measures
The most urgent situation of all. Police detention lasts a maximum of 24 hours, preventive arrest is ordered for a maximum of 30 days, and an appeal must be lodged within 48 hours of notification. Here it is a matter of hours.
What foreign clients most often ask
Do I have to be in Romania for the proceedings?
Not for every stage. Whether your presence is required depends on the procedural step and on the measures in place in your case. This is one of the first things I clarify, because it determines everything else you need to plan.
Will I get a state-appointed lawyer?
In cases where legal assistance is mandatory, yes — a lawyer will be appointed. That lawyer will not necessarily speak English, and will typically be assigned to a large number of files at once.
What happens to my passport?
Among the obligations that can accompany judicial supervision is a ban on leaving the country or a particular area. Whether such a measure applies, and whether it can be challenged or lifted, depends on the specifics of the case.
Is what I tell you confidential?
Yes. Any communication between client and lawyer is covered by professional privilege and cannot be used to accuse you. Be as candid as possible — it is the only way I can build a defence that holds.
Getting in touch
Call +40 742 833 784 or write to contact@chertes.legal. For urgent matters — a detention, a hearing in the coming days — call rather than write.