Several former collaborators of Antoine Vey, who was notably the lawyer of Julian Assange, Patrick Balkany and Abdelkader Merah, say they have lived through hell in his office. A lawyer agreed to tell us about her experience, it was seven years ago and she still has the after-effects. “I couldn't go home without being in tears on the bus, from exhaustion and then general malaise”she describes. This deep discomfort was linked to a suffocating work environment which took a toll on his health. With each message that arrived, says the lawyer, “There was a rising panic, telling me what else I'm going to do, what new order he's going to give me and above all what discontent he's going to express again.” She filed a complaint in court like two other former collaborators.
An investigation is underway, but around twenty have also chosen to contact the bar association. All say they have experienced the same thing: this system of humiliation coupled with continuous harassment on the part of the criminal lawyer, with SMS sent before 6 a.m. and until midnight, multiple WhatsApp groups – up to 147 – where messages arrive in a continuous stream, including during weekends, holidays or sick leave.
Many testimonies
Several former collaborators of the firm even affirm that certain missions did not concern work but the personal life of Antoine Vey. One of them tells franceinfo that he had to accompany his boss to the dentist or book his vacation for him. Another said she was tasked with organizing her birthday. One employee even says he was forced to clean up the vomit of the penalist's children or take out his trash and writes, in his complaint, that he was “treated like a stooge”.
Another form of complaint, a former employee also says she was the victim of sexual harassment. In her report to the order, this lawyer recounts the misogynistic remarks or the hands sometimes placed on her thighs. One evening, during a business trip, the criminal lawyer forces him to have a one-on-one drink. She confronts him and Antoine Vey's response leaves her speechless: “95% of guys want to beat you up, that’s kind of why I hired you”the criminal lawyer told him according to this lawyer’s account.
These facts are firmly contested by Antoine Vey, as are the accusations of moral harassment. These are only “isolated and false anecdotes”, says his lawyer Emmanuel Marsigny. “The Dupond-Moretti & Vey firm was a firm of excellencehe said, requiring a requirement that clearly most of these young lawyers who are complaining did not understand and above all were not capable of satisfying.” Antoine Vey's lawyer requested the postponement of the hearing scheduled for Tuesday November 19, 2024 before the Bar Council. For these facts, sanctions can range from a simple warning to removal.
A report by Margaux Stive, edited by Carol Sandevoir.
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