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| Christine Lagarde: IMF chief convicted over payout | Christine Lagarde: IMF chief convicted over payout |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A French court has found International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde guilty of negligence but did not hand down any punishment. | A French court has found International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde guilty of negligence but did not hand down any punishment. |
| As French finance minister in 2008, she approved an award of €404m ($429m; £340m) to businessman Bernard Tapie for the disputed sale of a firm. | As French finance minister in 2008, she approved an award of €404m ($429m; £340m) to businessman Bernard Tapie for the disputed sale of a firm. |
| Ms Lagarde, who always denied wrongdoing, was not present in court, having left France for Washington. | |
| The IMF board is to meet "shortly" to consider the latest developments. | The IMF board is to meet "shortly" to consider the latest developments. |
| Meanwhile, the French government said it still had confidence in the IMF chief. | |
| On Friday, Ms Lagarde told the trial she had always acted in good faith and the suspicion she had lived under for the past five years had been an "ordeal". | |
| Cases at the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR) may not be retried but can be appealed against on grounds of procedural errors. | Cases at the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR) may not be retried but can be appealed against on grounds of procedural errors. |
| Ms Lagarde's lawyer said his team would consider appealing, Reuters news agency reports. | |
| The former finance minister replaced Dominique Strauss-Kahn as IMF managing director in 2011. | The former finance minister replaced Dominique Strauss-Kahn as IMF managing director in 2011. |
| Mr Strauss-Kahn - also a former French finance minister - resigned following his arrest in New York on charges of sexual assault that were later dropped. | Mr Strauss-Kahn - also a former French finance minister - resigned following his arrest in New York on charges of sexual assault that were later dropped. |
| Another former IMF head, Rodrigo Rato of Spain, is currently standing trial on charges of misusing funds when he was head of Spanish lender Bankia. | Another former IMF head, Rodrigo Rato of Spain, is currently standing trial on charges of misusing funds when he was head of Spanish lender Bankia. |
| 'Complicated and strange' | |
| Ms Lagarde, 60, was tried on charges of "negligence by a person in position of public authority". | |
| Accused of allowing the misuse of public funds, rather than actual corruption, she could potentially have been sentenced to a year in prison and a fine of €15,000 but escaped a sentence and emerges from the trial without a criminal record. | |
| Explaining the verdict, which took many by surprise, Judge Martine Ract Madoux was quoted by Reuters as saying: "The context of the global financial crisis in which Madame Lagarde found herself in should be taken into account." | Explaining the verdict, which took many by surprise, Judge Martine Ract Madoux was quoted by Reuters as saying: "The context of the global financial crisis in which Madame Lagarde found herself in should be taken into account." |
| She also cited Ms Lagarde's good reputation and international standing as reasons. | |
| The CJR is composed mostly of politicians rather than judges, and handles allegations of crimes committed by cabinet ministers in office. | The CJR is composed mostly of politicians rather than judges, and handles allegations of crimes committed by cabinet ministers in office. |
| CJR trials are rare but in a similar judgment in 1999, it found another French politician, Edmond Herve, guilty of negligence over a contaminated blood case but did not punish him. | CJR trials are rare but in a similar judgment in 1999, it found another French politician, Edmond Herve, guilty of negligence over a contaminated blood case but did not punish him. |
| The earlier decision rested on a legal article (in French) which allows courts to deliver a guilty verdict but withhold actual punishment. | The earlier decision rested on a legal article (in French) which allows courts to deliver a guilty verdict but withhold actual punishment. |
| A lawyer for Ms Lagarde, Christopher Baker, told the Associated Press: "The result of this last five years is nothing, which leaves us in kind of a complicated and strange situation." | |
| Public outcry | Public outcry |
| Ms Lagarde's case originates in the early 1990s, when Mr Tapie was a majority shareholder in sports goods company Adidas. | |
| After launching a political career and becoming a cabinet minister in Francois Mitterrand's Socialist government in 1992, Mr Tapie had to sell the company. | After launching a political career and becoming a cabinet minister in Francois Mitterrand's Socialist government in 1992, Mr Tapie had to sell the company. |
| In 1993, he sued Credit Lyonnais, a state-owned bank that handled the sale, alleging that the bank had defrauded him by deliberately undervaluing the firm. | In 1993, he sued Credit Lyonnais, a state-owned bank that handled the sale, alleging that the bank had defrauded him by deliberately undervaluing the firm. |
| By 2007, the long-running case was referred to binding arbitration by Ms Lagarde, who at that time was finance minister under conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy. | |
| A three-member panel awarded the compensation a year later, causing a public outcry. | A three-member panel awarded the compensation a year later, causing a public outcry. |
| Last year, after eight more years of legal wrangling, a French court ruled that Mr Tapie had not been entitled to compensation and should repay the €404m. | Last year, after eight more years of legal wrangling, a French court ruled that Mr Tapie had not been entitled to compensation and should repay the €404m. |
| In its verdict, the CJR said Ms Lagarde should have asked her aides and others for more information about the "shocking arbitration award" that included damages of €45m. | |
| Lagarde-Tapie: A French saga | |
| 1993: Credit Lyonnais bank handles sale of Adidas to enable Mr Tapie to pursue ministerial career under then Socialist President Francois Mitterrand | |
| 1993-2007: Mr Tapie claims Credit Lyonnais undervalued Adidas and that he was cheated; lengthy court battle ensues | |
| 1994: Bernard Tapie's highly indebted group collapses and is wound up by Credit Lyonnais | |
| 2007: Mr Tapie supports conservative Nicolas Sarkozy in presidential election. Finance Minister Christine Lagarde intervenes in Tapie case to order binding arbitration | |
| 2008: Special judicial panel rules Mr Tapie should receive damages of €404m; Ms Lagarde decides not to challenge ruling | |
| 2011: Several months after Ms Lagarde is appointed head of the IMF, public prosecutor recommends investigation into her decision to order arbitration | |
| 2015: Appeals court orders Mr Tapie to pay back €404m with interest | |
| 2016: Ms Lagarde found guilty of negligence but spared prison sentence and criminal record |