The Court of Justice of the Republic, where Ms. Lagarde will stand trial, is rarely used. did not comment on whether Ms. Lagarde, who is the first woman to lead the organization, would need to recuse herself from her position during the trial. Mr. Tapie, a former leader of the Adidas sports empire and a minister in the Socialist government of President François Mitterrand in the early 1990s, switched political allegiances to support Mr. Sarkozy’s presidential campaign in 2007. Advertisement Continue reading the main storyThe large payout ignited a public outcry at the time, and Ms. Lagarde came under scrutiny for her role after she declined her advisers’ recommendations to appeal the decision. The cases before the 15-member body have mostly involved politicians, as former ministers are sometimes brought to trial when a new government takes over.

Source: International New York Times July 22, 2016 14:26 UTC