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Agence France-Presse

A French court has found IMF head Christine Lagarde guilty of negligence over a massive state payout to a tycoon when she was French finance minister but spared her a fine or prison.
The Court of Justice of the Republic found against Lagarde over her handling of a dispute between the state and flamboyant businessman Bernard Tapie, which ended in a €404 million (US$422 billion) award for Tapie.
The court rapped Lagarde for failing to contest the massive payment. Crucially, however, it exempted her from any penalty.
It was not clear what impact the finding will have on her position at the International Monetary Fund, which has so far given Lagarde its full backing.
The IMF board was to meet in Washington in the wake of the court’s decision.
The 60-year-old former corporate lawyer, who was the first ever female finance minister of a Group of Eight country before becoming IMF chief in 2011, was not in court for the ruling.
Her lawyer Patrick Maisonneuve told reporters she was in Washington. He welcomed the absence of a punishment but said he “would have preferred that she be simply cleared”.
Lagarde was put on trial over her 2007 decision to allow the ­dispute over Tapie’s sale of the Adidas sports brand to the ­state-owned Credit Lyonnais bank to be resolved by a private ­arbitration panel, and then failing to challenge the result.

The court cleared her of negligence over her decision to refer the matter to arbitration but upheld the charge over her failure to contest the award.
Lagarde told the court last week she had acted in good faith and that her sole aim had been “to defend the general interest”.
The Court of Justice of the Republic, which is staffed by judges and members of parliament, hears cases against ministers accused of wrongdoing in office.
The punishment for negligence theoretically carries a ­one-year prison sentence and a €15,000 fine.
Lagarde’s voice cracked with emotion on Friday as she said the trial had put her family through a “testing” time.
Prosecutor Jean-Claude Marin had said he believed the evidence was “very weak” and was opposed to convicting Lagarde.
The payout to Tapie raised eyebrows, given his vocal support for Lagarde’s then boss, ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy. It was subsequently cancelled by the courts.
Tapie sold Adidas to Credit Lyonnais for the equivalent of €315.5 million in 1993. The bank sold it a year later for €701 million, prompting claims from Tapie that he had been cheated.
Lagarde told her trial she had trusted the advice of her subordinates in the process. Another of her lawyers, Bernard Grelon, said her fault was “not one of negligence. It is having taken a decision which turned out badly”.


IMF chief Lagarde convicted in French negligence trial

Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, stands inside the courtroom and next to members of her legal team. Photo: AP

Patrick Maisonneuve, a French judge, speaks to the media outside the courtroom at Cour de Justice de la Republique following the conviction of Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in a negligence case in Paris, France, on Monday, Dec. 19. 2016. The judges on the Cour de Justice de la Republique said that Lagarde should have done more to overturn a 285 million-euro ($297 million) payout to a businessman in an arbitration case. Photographer: Jasper Juinen/Bloomberg

IMF chief Christine Lagarde proclaims innocence in French payout case

Christine Lagarde proclaimed her innocence in a Paris court on Monday at the start of her trial on accusations of negligence. Photo: Reuters

epaselect epa05672498 International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director and former Economy Minister Christine Lagarde appears in court at the Plais de Justice, in Paris, France, 12 December 2016. France's highest appeals court ordered on 22 July 2016 Lagarde to stand trial over a state payout to Bernard Tapie. Lagarde was charged for negligence over awarding more than 400 million euro during her time as economy minister in 2008. EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON

Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), center, gestures whilst speaking inside the courtroom and next to members of her legal team on the opening day of her trial at the Palais de Justice in Paris, France, on Monday, Dec. 12, 2016. Lagarde, 60, is standing trial on charges of negligence, accused of failing to prevent a massive government payout to businessman Bernard Tapie eight years ago, while serving as France’s finance minister. Photographer: Jasper Juinen/Bloomberg

Greece demands IMF answers  over leaked debt transcript

A protester holds a flag with the image of revolutionary hero Ernesto "Che" Guevara, as members of the Communist-affiliated PAME demonstrate outside the Greek parliament against new bailout measures in March. Photo: AP

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras (L) talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (R) during the European Union summit at the EU Headquarters in Brussels on March 18, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / JOHN THYS

IMF chief Lagarde convicted in French negligence trial

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}However, the former finance minister has not received any punishment

However, the former finance minister has not received any punishment