5
d)
on March 1, 2007, a work meeting was held with the majority of the
interested parties4 who provided their proposal [with regards to their fees],” and
manifested that the regulated professional fees of the experts and technical
consultant “are absolutely reasonable and should be paid with no acquittances.”
However, “to achieve compliance with the provisions of Decree [No.] 99/06” the
attorneys present in this meeting expressed that they would accept “a partial
acquittance of 20% [of their fees]”. The minutes of that meeting indicate that the
professionals “declared that if in conformity with the amount […] and upon receipt
of the payment, they will immediately request the lifting of the precautionary
measures decreed against José María Cantos.”
12.
That the representative indicated that the State’s report on that “they are working
with the group of professionals who intervened in the defense of the State” to establish a
fair amount for the fees, is “surprising”, not only because of “the delay” in reaching an
agreement, since more than 5 years have passed from the delivery of the Judgment, but
also because “the State reported on the recommendations of its own employees, which
state that there is agreement on the fairness of the proposals by all intervening parties,
including the State of Argentina.”
13.
That in the observations of November 15, 2007 and May 21, 2008, the
Commission took cognizance of the State’s reports on the meeting held to comply with
the Court’s order, and indicated that there has been a lack of advances on this issue
since the State report of October 1, 2007. Lastly, it indicated that it would await
information on the steps taken to comply with this obligation.
14.
That the Court values the State’s reports on the meeting held to establish at a fair
amount the professional fees of the interested parties, to comply with operative
paragraph two of the Judgment. This Court takes cognizance that the State has not
reported other advances on compliance with this obligation since October 1, 2007,
although it submitted two reports after that date. At that time it presented several
documents related to the work meeting held, in which there seemed to be an agreement
among the attorneys regarding the fees. Consequently, this Court believes that the State
must perform all actions necessary to comply with this reparation and report on the
advances of its implementation. This is mandatory since paragraph 74 of the Judgment
orders that the reparation measures ordered must be implemented within six months of
their notification, and it has been over six years from that date and compliance with this
point is still pending, with no State reports thereon.
*
*
*
15.
That with regards to operative paragraph three of the Judgment, on the
obligation to assume the payment of the fees and expenses of all experts and attorneys
engaged by the State and the Province of Santiago del Estero, under the conditions
established in operative paragraph two of the Judgment, on February 2, 2009 the State
4
According to the minutes of the meeting, submitted by the State, the following people were present at
the meeting: “Drs. Jorge Jáuregui and Santiago Bargallo Beade, of their own free will, and representing Claudia
Reston, the heirs of Raúl Huidobro, María Eugenia Galíndez, Carlos Raúl Ambrosio, the heirs of Manuel Luis de
Palacios, Guillermo Heisinger, Julio González and Cesar Graziani, Drs. Estanislao González Bergez and Daniel
Nigro, of their own free will and representing Norma Vicente Soutullo, Dr. María Eugenia Giambra representing
María Josefina Zabala; Drs. Juan González Moras and Elea Cristina Peliche, representing Mario Kestelboim, and
Dr. Jorge Albertsen representing the heirs of José Osvaldo D´Alessio”. In the same minutes “it was recorded
that Drs. Washington Inca Cardoso and Alejandro Cáceres Llamosas did not respond to the summons”.