Cristina Kirchner expands her international legal team to take the Vialidad case abroad

Former Argentine president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner has added Brazilian jurist Rafael Valim to the team preparing a filing before international bodies to challenge her conviction in the Vialidad case, according to sources close to her cited by the Argentine press. Those sources did not specify when he will begin working or what the first procedural steps will be, and the information has not been officially confirmed by her defense. Valim is a lawyer and professor of public law with more than two decades of experience in constitutional and administrative law and human rights. A doctor and master of law from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo, he has litigated before Brazil's Supreme Federal Court in cases involving the separation of powers and due process, and has taken part in proceedings before United Nations human rights mechanisms and the inter-American and European systems. He has written on the concept of lawfare, one of the pillars of the argument advanced by Kirchner's political movement since the conviction became final. According to the same reports, Valim will work alongside Spanish jurist Javier Borrego, a former judge of the European Court of Human Rights and former justice of the Third Chamber of Spain's Supreme Court, who was already part of the international team advising the former president. Fernández de Kirchner was sentenced to six years in prison and permanent disqualification from public office for fraudulent administration in the awarding of road public works contracts in Santa Cruz province. The sentence became final after being upheld by the higher instances of Argentina's judiciary. Her defense maintains that the proceedings were marked by political persecution and violations of due process, a position Argentine courts rejected throughout the case. The legal team is weighing two possible routes. The inter-American system requires submitting the case first to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and, if admitted, it may later reach the Inter-American Court. The other alternative is the United Nations human rights protection mechanisms. Those close to the former president have not confirmed which route will be chosen. Neither body can annul a conviction handed down by national courts. If a petition is admitted and responsibility is found, they may declare the state internationally responsible and order reparation measures, whose implementation falls to the country. The legal effort is complemented by a political committee set up last year to publicize abroad the movement's position on the case, made up of party figures, former officials, and human rights advocates. Top Comments Disclaimer & comment rulesNo comments for this story Please log in or register (it’s free!) to comment. Login with Facebook