Legal News

Mon Dieu! French Lawyer Erupts in Cambodian Court

By Dan Slater

For all you jet-setting lawyers who practice abroad, consider this cautionary tale. A French attorney, unhappy that court documents hadn’t been translated into his native language, erupted before Cambodia’s genocide tribunal yesterday, earning himself a warning from the court and a postponement of the hearing.

The lawyer, Jacques Verges, 83, is representing Khieu Samphan, whom the tribunal has charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during the reign of the Khmer Rouge, from 1975-79. (Here’s the AP story.) Khieu Samphan, 76, has repeatedly denied responsibility for any atrocities.

Verges reportedly stormed out of Wednesday’s closed-door hearing, telling reporters that judges had asked Khieu Samphan to find a new lawyer. “French is an official language of the tribunal. There is not one page of the case file against Mr. Khieu Samphan translated into French,” Verges told reporters, speaking in French. “I should be capable of knowing what my client is blamed for.” He added: “I have been a lawyer for 50 years, it is the first time I have seen judges ask an accused to change his lawyer. This is a scandal!” he said.

The lawyer, Verges, reports the AP, has earned notoriety with a client list that includes Nazi Gestapo officer Klaus Barbie, Venezuelan terrorist Carlos the Jackal and former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. Verges and Khieu Samphan apparently met when they both were active in left-wing student activities in Paris in the 1950’s.

Photo: Associated Press

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on April 24, 2008 (boomark / email).