Case No. IT-95-13/1-PT

Prosecutor v. Miroslav Radic

DECISION

THE DEPUTY REGISTRAR,NOTING the Statute of the Tribunal as adopted by the Security Council under Resolution 827 (1993), and in particular Article 21 thereof;

NOTING the Rules of Procedure and Evidence as adopted by the Tribunal on 11 February 1994, as subsequently amended ("Rules"), and in particular Rules 44 and 45 thereof;

NOTING the Directive on Assignment of Defence Counsel as adopted by the Tribunal on 28 July 1994, as subsequently amended ("Directive"), and in particular Articles 7(C), 8, 10, 11(A)(ii) and 18 thereof;

NOTING the Code of Professional Conduct for Counsel Appearing Before the International Tribunal (IT/125 REV.1);

NOTING the decision of the Registrar of 7 October 2003 assigning Mr Borivoje Borovic and Ms Mira Tapuskovic respectively as lead and co-counsel to Mr Miroslav Radic ("Accused");

CONSIDERING that in the same decision, the Registrar found the Accused able to remunerate counsel partially and decided that 223 hours of investigative and legal assistance work at the pre-trial stage shall be borne by the Accused, and that this number of hours would be deducted from the maximum allotment of hours provided by the Registry for support staff work at the pre-trial stage ("Registrar’s Decision");

CONSIDERING that on 27 October 2003, the Accused requested the Trial Chamber to review the Registrar’s Decision and to decide that all costs related to the preparation of the Accused’s defence at the pre-trial stage are to be borne by the Tribunal;1

CONSIDERING that on 11 December 2003 the Trial Chamber invited the Registrar to file comments on the Defence request as well as any material upon which he based the Registrar’s Decision;

CONSIDERING that the requested comments and material were filed by the Registry on 12 January 20042 ("Registry Comments"), and that the Defence filed its comments on the Registry Comments on 26 January 2004;3

CONSIDERING that in the Registry Comments, the Registrar explained in detail the methodology utilised in assessing the financial status of the Accused and maintained his decision that the Accused was able to partially remunerate counsel over an estimated 36-month period of pre-trial and trial proceedings in this case, and that 223 support staff hours were to be deducted from the pre-trial allotment of support staff hours for the initial 12 months of that period;

CONSIDERING that in May 2004, the Registry adopted a new policy for determining whether an accused has the means to remunerate counsel ("New Registry Policy");4

CONSIDERING that on 27 July 2004, the Pre-Trial Judge directed the Registrar "to inform the Pre-Trial Judge if in light of the [new] Registry Policy he agrees that it is the case for reconsidering the Registrar’s Decision" ("Pre-Trial Judge’s Directive");5

CONSIDERING that the New Registry Policy was designed to be applied to new cases and to cases in which the Registrar had made a determination as to the financial status of the accused if it would produce a more favorable result for the accused than the previous system under which his ability to remunerate counsel was assessed;6

CONSIDERING that in October 2004, the Accused provided the Registry with new documentation establishing his current financial status;

CONSIDERING that when applying the New Registry Policy to the current financial status of the Accused, the Registry concluded that the Accused would be found partially able to remunerate counsel and able to contribute US$19,224 to the cost of his defence over the estimated 36-month period of pre-trial and trial proceedings in this case as of the date of his declaration of means;

CONSIDERING that according to the previous system under which the Accused’s financial status was assessed, he was required to contribute a total of US$17,0227 to the cost of his defence over the estimated 36-month period of pre-trial and trial proceedings in this case;

CONSIDERING therefore that the new Registry Policy is less beneficial to this Accused;

CONSIDERING however that the new information provided by the Accused shows that his financial status has changed since the Registrar issued the Registrar’s Decision and, as such, this information must be treated as an update of the Accused’s declaration of means in accordance with Article 7(C) of the Directive;

CONSIDERING that a determination of the extent to which an accused is able to remunerate counsel must be based on the accused’s current financial status;

CONSIDERING further that the Registrar’s Decision has not been invalidated and was due to be reviewed on 6 October 2004 for the remaining 24 months of pre-trial and trial proceedings in this case, as detailed in the Registry Comments;

CONSIDERING that the Registry has assessed the Accused’s ability to remunerate counsel for the remaining 24 months of pre-trial and trial proceedings in this case based on the new information provided by the Accused and by applying the formula initially utilised for determining his financial status;

CONSIDERING that the Registry has found the Accused partially indigent and able to contribute US$9,679 to the cost of his defence until the end of the estimated period in which he will require legal representation before the Tribunal, as specified in the attached Confidential Ex Parte Annex;

CONSIDERING that in light of the fact that 223 hours have already been deducted from the pre-trial allotment of hours for support staff work provided by the Registry, it would be justified to deduct the Accused’s assessed contribution from the lump sum payable to the Defence at the trial stage;

DECIDES in light of the foregoing and without prejudice to Article 18 of the Directive, to confirm the assignment of Mr Borivoje Borovic and Ms Mira Tapuskovic respectively as lead and co-counsel to the Accused;

DECIDES that the Accused shall contribute US$9,679 to the cost of his defence at the trial stage of the proceedings and that this amount will be deducted from the lump sum paid by the Registry to the Defence at trial;

DECIDES that, except for the assessed contribution of the Accused as specified in the previous paragraph, all expenses related to the Accused’s legal representation as specified in Articles 22, 23, 26 and 27 of the Directive shall be met by the Tribunal.

 

______________
John Hocking
Deputy Registrar

Dated this fifteenth day of December 2004
At The Hague,
The Netherlands.


1. Prosecutor v. Mrksic et al. Case No. IT-95-13/1-PT, Request by the Radic Defence to the Trial Chamber to Review the Registrar’s Decision dated 7 October 2003, 27 October 2003.
2. Prosecutor v. Mrksic et al. Case No. IT-95-13/1-PT, Registry Comments on Radic’s Defence Request for Review of the Registrar’s Decision of 7 October 2003, 12 January 2004.
3. Prosecutor v. Mrksic et al. Case No. IT-95-13/1-PT, Comments of the Accused Miroslav Radic’s Defence to the Registry Comments on Radic’ Defence Request for Review of the Registrar’s Decision of 07 October 2003, filed 12 January 2004, 26 January 2004.
4. Registry Policy for Determining the Extent to which an Accused is able to Remunerate Counsel, 4 May 2004.
5. Prosecutor v. Miroslav Radic, Case No. IT-95-13/1-PT, Directive to Reconsider Legal Aid Decision, 27 July 2004.
6. See letter sent by the Acting Chief of OLAD to the Association of Defence Counsel on 27 May 2004.
7. Exchange rates current as of November 2004.