A relief for the government. The Minister of Justice, Eric Dupond-Moretti, was acquitted by the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR) on Wednesday November 29. He was accused, in two separate cases, of having used his position as minister to settle scores with four magistrates whom he had publicly criticized when he was a lawyer. “There is no evidence to suggest that he ignored the conflict of interest situation which had not been brought to his attention”explained the president of the CJR. “This is what we hoped for, this is what the law dictated”reacted Jacqueline Laffont, one of Eric Dupond-Moretti’s lawyers.
The prosecution had requested a one-year suspended prison sentence against the former tenor of the bar, nicknamed “Acquittator”, and who had become a “respected” and “highly identified” member of the government. This is the first time that a serving Minister of Justice was judged by the CJR. Follow our live stream.
A release which should allow him to remain in government. The executive was feverishly awaiting this decision. Because if he had been convicted, the Minister of Justice could have been removed from the government. With her release, her place seems confirmed within Elisabeth Borne’s team.
“It’s the victory of the law”, for Eric Dupond-Moretti’s lawyer. “And also, in a sense, the victory of the separation of powers”declared Jacqueline Laffont after the announcement of the acquittal of the Minister of Justice.
La France insoumise demands the suppression of the CJR. “While the trial relentlessly demonstrated his guilt, a majority of parliamentary judges chose to acquit him”, deplores the party. LFI believes that it “it’s time to eliminate this systematically biased self-jurisdiction”. For the party founded by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, “the maintenance of the Minister of Justice shows that the illegal taking of interests is a macronic mode of government”.