...No conviction: No civil liability...
This falls beyond the “No taxation without representation” category. And that was part of what led to the unpleasantness with George III.
Sometimes, the seizing entity will try to make a “Deal” where the government gets to keep a percentage of the take in return for the balance of the property. This amounts to legalized extortion.
Formal hearings often have to be held when the Prosecutors office wants to keep the ill gotten proceeds anyway. The burden essentially falls on the owner. And the owner must hire a lawyer to be on equal footing with the state’s attorney or take a chance on representing themselves.
It’s a stacked deck any way you look at it.
Government: You have too much and we want to assert its for the wrong reasons. Give us some and we may not take all!