On June 23, the Administrative Court of Paris decided to withdraw its legal consent from the Anticor Association, a precious sesame that allowed it to become a civil party in cases related to the fight against corruption. More specifically, it is the decree of April 2, 2021 signed by Jean Castex, then Prime Minister, and the renewal of this consent for a period of three years which has been rescinded. The Administrative Court of Paris, seized by two dissidents from the NGO, considered that the decree included A “An error in the law.”
Losing this approval is an undeniable blow to Anticore, which was co-founded in 2002 by Judges Eric Halfin and Severine Tessier. Without it, it will be very difficult for the Anti-Corruption Association to initiate new actions. Due to the retroactive decision of the Administrative Court, the existence of the NGO can also be called into question in cases in which it has been a civil party since April 2, 2021. The persons concerned can also submit applications for annulment in connection with certain procedural actions.
sequel after announcement
The NGO participated in 159 actions
To date, Anticor is involved in 159 procedures, according to its president, Elise van Beneden. Among them, the ongoing investigations into the awarding of the World Cup to Qatar, the investigation into the illegal appropriation of interests targeting the Secretary General of the Elysee Palace Alexis Köhler or those against the Keeper of Seals Eric Dupond Moretti before the International Court of Justice. Judge of the Republic – the reason for signing the renewal was by Jean Castex, not the Minister of Justice …
On 20 June, three days before losing its approval, the association also filed a complaint against X suspected highway concessionaires who were favored by the Valls government in 2015. A complaint may not succeed due to loss of accreditation.
“Serious attack on democracy”: the administrative court revoked the judicial approval of the NGO Anticor
Judge Eric Alt, a current member of the board of directors of the association of which he was vice president, explains to Opus:
“In the event that the investigation continues in a case in which we are a civil party, the reform court may decide to continue the investigation “weakly” until its end. But in cases where we did not have time to file a civil case because we were in the preliminary investigation stage, this is the case Particularly in the Highways case, it is up to the Public Prosecutor’s Office to issue its conclusions. »
A new license application has been submitted
Once the Society’s wrath is over, how do you save Anticore? Many actions are under way, from a simple call to a complete change in approval procedures. “The first point we are working on is appealing the administrative court’s decision,” Eric Alt says. This goes through the appeals process “long enough”as well as by requesting a retroactive suspension of the decision. On this second point, case law leaves us little hope, but nothing is in vain. said the judge.
sequel after announcement
Almost immediately after the Administrative Tribunal’s decision, a new application for approval by the Assembly was submitted to the office of Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne. Matignon’s tenant has four months to respond. “All the elements are in place to quickly judge this file. The remaining time is political time, the time of the will.” thought Eric Alt.
For now, the Prime Minister simply indicated that she would respond ” As soon as possible “ for this new request. “The legitimacy of Anticor in benefiting from the accreditation is beyond doubt. The executive branch must ensure as soon as possible [son] Renewalin a press release, Transparency International, one of the two other associations holding an anti-corruption license with Sherpa, following the decision of the Administrative Court of Paris.
Change the action
At the same time, Anticor is also working to change the way NGOs can get their approval, so that they are no longer dependent on the goodwill of politicians. For Eric Alt, it is the High Commission for Transparency of Public Life (HATVP) that should have the power to screen applications for approval: “We already have consent that allows us to enter HATVP. Logically, it should also be up to her to give us the right to file a civil suit.” On this point, he did not see the government move immediately.
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Meanwhile, Anticor is following up on its tasks and carefully examining the development of the proceedings. “Contrary to what I have heard, no, the association has not been dissolved, Eric Alt confirms. We are continuing to work on the files before 2021, when we still have our powers, and we are studying the case law regarding the subsequent files. But here we are, the assembly is doing very well. »
