The former Administrator of Properties for Prince Albert II of Monaco, Claude Palmero, who stepped down from his long-held position in the summer, is reportedly set to take his case against the Principality to the European Court of Human Rights.
Three months on from a ruling by Monaco’s Supreme Court that rejected Palmero’s fight back against his dismissal and his demands that Prince Albert pay him €1 million in compensation, the Monaco Matin has published comments from his lawyers that indicate the disgraced civil servant will “imminently” take his cause to the European Court of Human Rights.
Palmero had been appointed to the task of managing the personal fortune of the Prince, the Princely Family and that of the Sovereign House back in 2001, during the reign of the late Prince Rainier III. He continued working closely with the Princely Family and Prince Albert until June 2023.
Then the Palais Princier de Monaco released an official statement announcing: “Prince Albert II has accepted the decision of Mr. Claude Palmero to assert his pension rights from 12th June. Aged 67, Mr Palmero was the Administrator of the Property of the Prince and the Sovereign House since 2001. The Sovereign Prince declares: ‘I would like to thank Mr. Claude Palmero for the professionalism he has shown evidenced throughout the years spent in the administration of my property and the Sovereign House.’”
His retirement – or unfair removal from the job, as reportedly argued by Palmero and his lawyers – was linked to the so-called Rock Files, or Dossiers du Rocher, that have caused significant controversy in the Principality in recent years.
See more: Dossiers du Rocher: Homes of former officials close to Prince Albert searched
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According to the Monaco Matin, on Monday 18th December Palmero was heard and rejected by the Supreme Court of Monaco for a second time. The newspaper has reported that Palmero’s case in this second instance took particular aim at two magistrates appointed to the court, Stéphane Braconnier and Philippe Blacher, over the summer.
In comments published online by the Monaco Matin, Palmero’s lawyers say their appointment “violates the Monegasque Constitution as well as the standards of independence and impartiality required by the Council of Europe”.
A statement from the former President of the Bar of Paris, Pierre-Olivier Sûr, who is believed to be representing Palmero, was also published by the Monaco Matin.
“VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL COMMITTMENTS”
“The Strasbourg Court [also known as the European Court of Human Rights] will be seized before the end of the year to challenge the very questionable order which was issued on 18th December 2023 by the Supreme Court of Monaco, and more generally to obtain the condemnation of the Principality before the whole of Europe for violation of its international commitments,” reportedly reads the statement.
Sûr’s statement adds that the decision to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights was also made “to force the Principality to respect in the future the principles of separation of powers, independence of justice and access to the law”.
“This will force the Principality to undertake a comprehensive constitutional reform which will finally make it possible to fight effectively against corruption, as Claude Palmero has been striving to do consistently for many years,” concludes the published statement.
No official statement has been made by the Prince’s Palace.
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Photo source: Kirsten Frosh, Unsplash