José Sócrates’ Third Lawyer Resigns, Triggering ECHR Appeal and Trial Delays

Portugal’s most publicised corruption trial has drifted into fresh uncertainty. Former prime minister José Sócrates is once again without a permanent lawyer after José Preto’s sudden resignation, reopening procedural battles that could delay a verdict many Portuguese have waited nearly a decade to hear.

At a glance

• Third defence change since charges were filed, leaving Sócrates unrepresented

• Court appointed Ana Velho as stand-in counsel, but the defendant rejects her work

• Presiding judge granted just 10 days to review 300 000 pages and 400 h of recordings

• Sócrates threatens new appeals to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the UN Human Rights Council

• Calendar of the Operação Marquês trial risks further slippage, with public costs mounting

A courtroom without a captain

The defence table inside Lisbon’s Campus da Justiça now sits conspicuously empty. Preto, recruited only last November, informed the court that a December bout of pneumonia left him medically unfit and unable to tackle the mountain of evidence. When the bench refused his request for a five-and-a-half-month study period, he bowed out. In his wake, the panel installed Ana Velho as court-appointed counsel — a move Sócrates publicly disavowed, claiming every filing she signs could later be challenged.

Why lawyers keep walking away

Legal analysts see a pattern: high-profile advocates collide with the tribunal’s strict clocks, then step aside rather than risk malpractice claims. Pedro Delille quit for similar reasons last year, blaming what he called an “insurmountable climate” between the bench and the defence. Each departure forces a reset that opponents label a stalling tactic and supporters frame as a constitutional necessity when adequate preparation time is denied.

The ticking clock and the 300 000-page labyrinth

At the heart of the dispute is scale. The indictment runs to more pages than Portugal’s entire Civil Code. Prosecutors enjoyed months to craft their case; the defence, the judge insists, needs far less because most evidence has already been picked over during pre-trial hearings. Sócrates counters that compressing the schedule breaches Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which promises enough time and means to prepare. The tension illustrates how mega-trials test the limits of classic courtroom logistics.

Potential replacements: who would dare?

Names circulating in Lisbon cafés range from seasoned white-collar specialist Paulo Sa e Cunha to rising criminal litigator Inês Franco, yet no candidate has stepped forward publicly. Any volunteer inherits a file that fills an archive room and a client determined to litigate every procedural turn. Senior lawyers quietly admit the brief is “career-defining, or career-ending”.

International complaints raise the stakes

While hunting for local counsel, Sócrates has activated a foreign legal front. Belgian lawyers last week lodged a fresh submission before the ECHR and alerted the UN in Geneva, arguing that Portugal’s judiciary shows a “double standard” by granting the prosecution generous timelines while rushing the defence. Such petitions rarely halt domestic trials, yet they pile symbolic pressure on Lisbon’s courts and could translate into damages later.

What comes next for Portuguese taxpayers

Judge Susana Seca has given the former leader until the end of the month to name a new attorney. If he fails, Velho’s court-appointed mandate becomes permanent, potentially triggering a wave of appeals and, in practical terms, still more hearings about hearings. Citizens footing the bill are left to wonder whether the marathon case will advance before the statute of limitations erodes key charges. For now, the only certainty is that Portugal’s most watched legal saga has added another chapter — and another lawyer-shaped cliff-hanger.