By a despatch from the Prime Minister, received on 31 March 2021, the panel of the High Council for the Judiciary with jurisdiction over the discipline of prosecutors was seized of facts attributable to Ms. Eliane Houlette, former head of the National Financial Prosecution Service (“Parquet National Financier”), and of the situation of Mr. Patrice Amar, first deputy prosecutor within the same service.
In accordance with the principle of impartiality, the General Prosecutor at the Cassation court, who chairs this panel, decided to withdraw from the disciplinary proceedings relating to these two prosecutors. In his capacity as head prosecutor at the court of first instance of Paris, he worked closely with the former prosecutor in charge of economic and financial crimes and was Mr Amar's direct superior before Mr Amar was appointed to the National Financial Prosecution Service.
Therefore, the panel chaired by its deputy chair, pursuant to Article 14 of Organic Law 94-100 of 5 February 1994 on the High Council for the Judiciary.
On 16 April 2021, this panel noted that it had not been seized of a report of facts giving rise to disciplinary proceedings against Mr Patrice Amar, within the meaning of Article 63 of Order no. 58-1270 of 22 December 1958 on the status of the judiciary. The Council considered that it had been seized by a request to conduct investigations, prior to this referral, in order to determine whether this prosecutor is liable to disciplinary action, which is not within its remit.
Moreover, since the matter was referred to the panel based on the above-mentioned provisions by the denunciation of facts giving rise to disciplinary proceedings against Ms Eliane Houlette, its deputy chair appointed two members of the panel as rapporteurs to conduct an investigation. Ms Houlette was informed of this appointment and of her right to access her file, in accordance with the applicable procedure.