Month: October 2016

The annual ceremony and procession – the “Audience Solennelle de Rentrée des Cours et Tribunaux” – was held on Monday at the Palace of Justice, in the presence of HSH Prince Albert, to mark the start of the new judicial year. The assembled magistrates attended a Mass at the neighbouring Cathedral of Monaco an hour beforehand for a blessing of the upcoming year.
The traditional re-entry address was given by Ms Cécile Chatel-Petit, Vice-President of the Court of Review. In her remarks she focussed on the Court of Revision facing the uncertain future of the supreme courts of the judiciary.

General Prosecutor Mr Jacques Dorémieux said the past judicial year reflected a further decline in the number of criminal cases registered, with a decrease of 18% over the last two years.
However, he added that there has been an increase in incidents related to violence and alcohol, and this matter needs to be reviewed, as well as financial crime, which accounts for 37% of all registered cases and 52% of cases for which international judicial assistance is required.
Mr Dorémieux officially declared the 2015/16 court closed and the 2016/17 session open at 12:30 pm.
(Procession photo homepage: ©Direction de la Communication/Charly Gallo)

A young man from Nice has disappeared while on a visit to Monaco and his friends and family have launched an online campaign to find him.
Valentin Breton, 24, was last seen on Casino Square at 5 pm on Friday having spent the afternoon at the Casino with a friend. He failed to return home and has not been in contact since. He is 1.75 metres in height, and weighs 78 kilos. He was wearing a red hat, a grey t-shirt, red shorts and red or black trainers. He had a multicoloured small backpack.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Valentin’s family on 06 09 54 62 91 or on Facebook.

On Friday, the Junior Chamber of Monaco held its first working breakfast after the summer holidays at the conference centre of Le Méridien Beach Plaza. The Minister of Health and Social Affairs, Mr Stéphane Valeri, was the keynote speaker on the topic of the implementation of teleworking in the Principality.
Mr Valeri pointed out that teleworking has gone far beyond the planning stage and is now operational in several companies in Monaco, including Monaco Telecom. He said that more than 20 companies have asked for detailed information and plan to use teleworking as a means of reducing the problems posed by commuting.
The Principality’s economy is very dependent on workers who go back and forth daily from France and Italy, and while other measures have been taken to reduce the challenges of congested roads and unreliable train services, teleworking can work well for both empires and employees.
“Teleworking is the future, and business leaders and employees of our countries are now using it,” Mr Valeri added.

An aspiring rally driver who desperately wanted to take part in the 2016 Monte-Carlo Rally has been punished for pushing his dream too far. Dorian G borrowed a Peugeot 205 from a cousin and stole a sticker from another vehicle but was intercepted by police as he tried to take part in the Sisteron-Thoard section.
When stopped, he said he had been commissioned to take photos for a motorsport magazine. However, the Criminal Court of Digne took a dim view of the matter and sent him to jail for a month.