Although some of the documents are reportedly from the ‘Panama Papers’ data breach at Mossack Fonseca, others may be from an unrelated 2013 investigation by the ICIJ into the offshore industry.

Despite the controversy surrounding the leaked Panama Papers and the secret offshore wealth of prominent figures they reveal, the law firms themselves may have done absolutely nothing wrong. Mossack Fonseca, for its part, claims that it has done nothing wrong and is merely the victim of an illegal hack.

‘Legitimate uses’ for offshore companies

‘There are legitimate uses for offshore companies and trusts,’ the ICIJ says in a message to database users. ‘We do not intend to suggest or imply that any persons, companies or other entities included in the ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database have broken the law or otherwise acted improperly.’

Sources: Am Law Daily; BBC News; ICIJ