In Nancy, an investigation opened after the attack on the lawyer of a doctor in conflict with the AS Nancy Lorraine club

Mᵉ Virginie Cousin, lawyer for the doctor in conflict with the ASNL, was physically attacked on Sunday, June 23, around noon, while she was returning home. 150 lawyers and magistrates gathered in front of the Nancy judicial district today to express their support.

« You’re the one who wants to sink the club! “, one of the attackers would have told him, according to information from “Est Républicain”. This Sunday around 12:50 p.m., Virginie Cousin, the lawyer of the doctor in conflict with AS Nancy Lorraine, said she was attacked by masked men outside her home. According to her account, she was addressed in the common areas of her building by two individuals wearing caps and surgical masks hiding their faces. Initially, the individuals asked him to confirm his identity before punching him twice, then fleeing.

Following the complaint filed by the lawyer, the Nancy prosecutor’s office confirmed to “New Obs” that it had opened an investigation into intentional violence aggravated by three circumstances, ” premeditation or ambush, person hiding their face, to the detriment of a lawyer ».

On June 27, around 150 lawyers and magistrates gathered in front of the Nancy judicial city to demonstrate their support for Virginie Cousin. A similar mobilization also took place at the same time in front of the Epinal courthouse.

Repeated intimidation

This attack seems to be linked to the lawyer’s involvement in the legal proceedings against ASNLn, currently in a complicated financial and sporting situation since it moved from L1 to National in a few years. M^e Virginie Cousin is contesting the economic dismissal of her client, Frédéric Muel, which occurred in October 2023. He had been working as a doctor for the professional team since 2009. He had already started a lawsuit against ASNL in July 2023 for moral harassment.

“The ASNL actually wanted him to [M. Muel] resigns, he leaves without compensation. […] He refused. So they harassed him, made him understand that he no longer had a place, they put him in unhealthy competition with the other employees. The ultimate solution to get rid of him was to lay him off economically,” the lawyer then declared last October.

“I don’t understand what I did wrong. I only did my job! I would like this file to return to normal”, protested M^e Cousin, in reaction to the attack she suffered. This is not the first time that she says she is a victim of intimidation because she defends dismissed employees against the ASNL. Last January, her apartment door was tagged. It read “ Holveck Support [Nicolas Holveck, président de l’ASNL, décédé en avril 2024], Long live ASNL, you die! », all accompanied by a swastika. She then filed a complaint and an investigation was opened.

“She was thrown out to pasture”

Contacted by “le Nouvel Obs”, Frédéric Berna, former president of the Nancy court, expressed his dismay at the aggression of his colleague: “ She was thrown out to pasture because she had the misfortune of contesting a dismissal. He is blamed for the poor financial health of the club. » The lawyer also calls into question the responsibility of the leaders of the ASNL, who continued to make “ being pressured and threatened ».

According to the former president of the bar, the latter have ” blown on the embers “, knowing full well the audience they are addressing. He denounces the reflection of an era, in which lawyers are attacked in a shameless manner. Mr.^e Cousin to withdraw from the case, and the lawyers opposite ” made him the worst possible misery “, according to the former president of the bar. M^e Bern term: « This is contrary to the rule of law and the idea of ​​justice for all. »

Contacted, the club’s lawyer had not responded to our requests by the time we went to press.

Support from the Eastern Bar Association Conference

The Eastern Conference of Presidents (Cobest) sent its support to Mr.^e Cousin on X: ” The effective exercise of the rights of the defense must be done without violence, without intimidation and without hindrance. Solidarity of the 23 bars of the East with our Nancy colleague. »

The doctor is not the only veteran to sue the Nancy club, among them: ex-president Gauthier Ganaye, ex-general manager Thorsten Theys, players whose contract was not renewed last July, or the former director of the training center Patrick Gabriel, according to “l’Est régional”. M^e Cousin was due to plead this Wednesday, June 26 before the Industrial Tribunal, for another of her clients Michel Jadot, former ASNL steward who was also made redundant. She will not be able to do so, and will be replaced by her colleague M^e Karine Laprévotte, according to the same source.