Olivier Metzner found dead in an apparent suicide
Olivier Metzner, one of France’s best-known criminal lawyers, has been found dead.
His body was found floating off his private island in Brittany.
A note was found at Olivier Metzner’s home and an investigation has been opened, with police treating the case as suicide.
Olivier Metzner made his name in a series of high-profile cases, defending the rogue trader Jerome Kerviel, former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, and Vivendi chief Jean-Marie Messier.
He was one of a handful of star lawyers in France, who between them have dominated the great court cases of the last two decades.
Olivier Metzner, one of France’s best-known criminal lawyers, has been found dead
Olivier Metzner successfully defended former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, when he was accused of a conspiracy to defame President Nicolas Sarkozy, but his client Jerome Kerviel – who caused billions of euros in losses at the bank Societe Generale – was convicted.Other clients included the businessman and former head of Vivendi Jean-Marie Messier, who was convicted of fraud, and Continental Airlines, which was eventually cleared of criminal liability in causing the crash of a Concorde in Paris in 2000.
Rarely seen out of court without a large cigar, Olivier Metzner was renowned for his intricate understanding of the most complex cases, and multinational corporations regular sought his services.
[youtube MAMo5Uu7wr0]
