The law would allow Switzerland to give aid groups in Haiti at least $4.6 million claimed from Swiss bank accounts by former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier, the Swiss government said Wednesday, as it announced that Parliament was ready to vote on the legislation.

“With the law, cases such as ... Duvalier will not happen again,” said Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey. She said the legislation received strong support in the preliminary steps, making approval likely as soon as a vote can be scheduled.

In a ruling which embarrassed the government, Switzerland’s top court decided Jan. 12, just hours before a devastating earthquake struck Haiti, that $4.6 million must be returned to Duvalier’s family because the statute of limitations on any crimes committed by the Duvalier clan would have expired in 2001.

The Swiss government rushed out an emergency decree saying the funds are of criminal origin and should go to aid agencies working in the impoverished Caribbean nation. It decided to keep the money blocked in a Swiss bank pending passage of the law making the aid transfer possible.

Under the new law, Switzerland’s administrative court would be able to confiscate or freeze dictator cash in Swiss banks, even if a country is not able to prosecute its deposed leader. The purpose of confiscating the assets is to fund aid programs that help improve people’s living conditions in such a country, a Swiss government statement said.

Switzerland has traditionally been a favorite location for “potentate” money because of its banking secrecy rules. But reforms over the last two decades have made it harder to hide money in Switzerland, and the country has become a world leader in returning such cash.