The Conférence des avocats du barreau de Paris is an association of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

lawyers founded in 1810 which brings together twelve young

lawyers A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as wel ...

elected by their peers (following a three-round oratory contest), working as a special task force on sensitive criminal cases.

History

Many ''Secrétaires de la conférence'' have distinguished themselves in French culture and politics such as Members of the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

Jean-Denis BREDIN
Académie française Members of the Government, Members of Parliament, Presidents of the French Republic (

Jules Grévy François Judith Paul Grévy (15 August 1807 – 9 September 1891), known as Jules Grévy (), was a French people, French lawyer and politician who served as President of France from 1879 to 1887. He was a leader of the Opportunist Republicans, M ...

Raymond Poincaré Raymond Nicolas Landry Poincaré (; 20 August 1860 – 15 October 1934) was a French statesman who served as President of France from 1913 to 1920, and three times as Prime Minister of France. He was a conservative leader, primarily committed to ...

Alexandre Millerand Alexandre Millerand (; – ) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1920 to 1924, having previously served as Prime Minister of France earlier in 1920. His participation in Waldeck-Rousseau's cabinet at the start of the ...

). Many notable lawyers were Secrétaires de la Conférence and marked French judicial history. Among them Fernand Labori who defended

Alfred Dreyfus Alfred Dreyfus (9 October 1859 – 12 July 1935) was a French Army officer best known for his central role in the Dreyfus affair. In 1894, Dreyfus fell victim to a judicial conspiracy that eventually sparked a major political crisis in the Fre ...

and

Jacques Vergès Jacques Vergès (; 5 March 1925 – 15 August 2013) was a French-Algerian lawyer of Vietnamese origin and anti-colonial activist. Vergès began as a fighter in the French Resistance during World War II, under Charles de Gaulle's Free French forc ...

famous for having defended

Klaus Barbie Nikolaus Barbie (25 October 1913 – 25 September 1991) was a German officer of the ''Schutzstaffel'' and ''Sicherheitsdienst'' who worked in Vichy France during World War II. He became known as the "Butcher of Lyon" for having personally tortu ...

and Sadam Hussein.

The conference competition

The twelve ''Secrétaires de la conférence'' (incumbent secretaries) designate their successors following a three-round oratory contest known as ''concours d' éloquence'' in which the candidates (around 300) are assigned to give a speech on a non legal related and very confusing subject.

Criminal defense

The conference is charged by the Paris'

Bâtonnier In some legal systems, the bâtonnier is the head of the legal profession (the bar). Jersey In Jersey, the Bâtonnier is head of the profession of advocate. The role includes administering the legal aid system for the island (the day-to-day adm ...

(President of the

Bar association A bar association is a professional association of lawyers as generally organized in countries following the Anglo-American types of jurisprudence.

) with the defence of sensitive criminal matters (rapes, murder, terrorism, fast track procedures) from the custody stage until the trial before the

Cour d'assises In France, a ''cour d'assises'', or Court of Assizes or Assize Court, is a Criminal law, criminal trial court with original jurisdiction, original and Appellate jurisdiction, appellate limited jurisdiction to hear cases involving defendants accu ...

(French criminal court).

The representation of the Paris Bar

The conference represents the Paris

bar association A bar association is a professional association of lawyers as generally organized in countries following the Anglo-American types of jurisprudence.

in France and abroad, particularly with the French-speaking bars, with which it maintains long-lasting and privileged links. The conference is also present in sensitive trials abroad to report and alert when human rights are threatened. The Conférence also engages in lobbying every time a new draft bill regarding criminal law, is discussed in the Government or before the Parliament.

References

External links