Case No.: IT-02-54-T
IN THE TRIAL CHAMBER
Before:
Judge Patrick Robinson, Presiding
Judge O-Gon Kwon
Judge Iain Bonomy
Registrar:
Mr. Hans Holthuis
Order of:
2 March 2006
PROSECUTOR
v.
SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC
___________________________________________________________________________
ORDER ON MOTION OF UNITED STATES FOR EXTENSION OF TIME
___________________________________________________________________________
Office of the Prosecutor
Ms. Carla Del Ponte
Mr. Geoffrey Nice
Government of the United States of America
Mr. Clifton M. Johnson
Ms. Heather A. Schildge
The Accused
Mr. Slobodan Milosevic
Court Assigned Counsel
Mr. Steven Kay
Ms. Gillian Higgins
Amicus Curiae
Prof. Timothy McCormack
THIS TRIAL CHAMBER of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991 ("Tribunal") is seized of a "Request of the United States of America for an Extension of the March 8 Deadline Set by the Trial Chamber in its ‘Preliminary Order on Assigned Counsel Request for a Subpoena ad Testificandum to be Issued to Mr. William Clinton’ Dated 27 February 2006" and hereby renders its decision thereon.
- On 22 February 2006 the Assigned Counsel filed a request for a subpoena ad testificandum to be issued to Mr. William Clinton ("Clinton Subpoena Request" or "Request").1 The Request was originally filed on a confidential and ex parte basis, but (with the exception of Attachment A to the Request) was made public on 27 February 2006.
- That same day, the Accused requested that the Chamber
issue a decision on the Clinton Subpoena Request,
as well as a decision on another request seeking
to recall former General Wesley Clark to testify,
as soon as possible because these decisions were
important to the Accused "for planning purposes."2
The Trial Chamber sought to accommodate the Accused’s
concerns by indicating that the Chamber would issue
a decision on both requests by 10 March 2006.3 To
make this possible, the Trial Chamber issued a written
order requiring that any response to the Clinton
Subpoena Request be filed by 8 March 2006.4
- On 1 March 2006 the government of the United States
("United States") filed a motion seeking that the
Trial Chamber extend by two days the time in which
it may respond to the Clinton Subpoena Request, so
that the response would be due on 10 March 2006 ("Motion").5
- The United States argues that an extension of time
is warranted because (a) the Request was unexpected,
given that the United States "had made substantial
efforts to work cooperatively with Assigned Counsel
to provide senior former government officials for
interviews",6 and (b)
the Request, in seeking that a subpoena be issued
against a former head of state, "directly implicate[s]
a number of policy concerns and legal issues" and
requires "significant work as well as extensive coordination" which "will
be extremely difficult to accomplish within the short
timeframe" that has been imposed.7 The
United States also states that it has consulted Assigned
Counsel and that the latter has "indicated that he
does not object" to the proposed two-day extension.8
- Under Rule 127 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, a time limit may be varied on a showing of "good cause." The Chamber considers that, given the modest (two-day) extension requested, the extent of the work involved in responding to the Clinton Subpoena Request, and the absence of any objection by Assigned Counsel to the requested extension, good cause exists for the extension of time sought in the United States’ Motion.
- The Trial Chamber therefore GRANTS the Motion and, pursuant to Rules 54 and 127, ORDERS the United States to file its response to the Clinton Subpoena Request on or before 10 March 2006.
Done in English and French, the English text being authoritative.
___________________________
Patrick Robinson
Presiding
Dated this second day of March 2006
At The Hague
The Netherlands
[Seal of the Tribunal]
1.
Assigned Counsel Request for a Subpoena Ad Testificandum to
be issued to Mr. William Clinton pursuant to Rule 54,
and Attachments A and B, 22 February 2006.
2.
T. 48949
(27 February 2006).
3.
Id.
4.
Preliminary Order on Assigned Counsel Request for
a Subpoena Ad Testificandum to be Issued to
Mr. William Clinton, 27 February 2006.
5.
Request of the
United States of America for an Extension of the March
8 Deadline Set by the Trial Chamber in its ‘Preliminary
Order on Assigned Counsel Request for a Subpoena
ad Testificandum to
be Issued to Mr. William Clinton’ Dated 27 February
2006, 1 March 2006.
6.
Motion, para. 3.
7.
Id. at para. 4.
8.
Id. at para. 5.