This is an authorized translation in English of a post in French by Vincent Le Roy (@vincentleroy): LE DOSSIER VALMY (Thriller) : Chapitre 20

^{As my primary language is not English, there are probably some mistakes in my translation.}

Remember that the person who speaks here is NOT me, Vincent Celier (@vcelier), but Vincent Le Roy (@vincentleroy), a French guy.

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Chapter 20: Dura lex sed lex

At the beginning of autumn 2006, the company is saved thanks to the contract with the Germans. We work like crazy to succeed with our challenge but in my case, each day ended was followed by a me a second one to with the court records. I had the naiveté to believe that despite some missteps, my opponents have missed their goal and will let go of the case. The opposite is happening.

First there is a letter from Kojak to the auditor in mid-September. Four pages of insanity about my management. He suspects embezzlement. A VAT scam. And besides, he will have the proofs soon ... I do not understand this last sentence. What evidence?

This first mail makes us rather smile so stupid it is. We do not understand its utility at the time but we will soon understand that the judicial vacuum will tighten. Relentlessly. The judicial steamroller has started behind us.

In September, it is necessary to manage the prud'hommes of the two chemists who betrayed and that I fired in June. My Parisian lawyer recommends me to take a local lawyer. The Chamber of Commerce recommends us the same thing and proposes us a name. Very influential, so to speak.

The guy is indeed a character. Striped shirt, braces and havana cigar in the mouth, he is the only partner of his firm which has about twenty collaborators. Strong personality therefore. And from the outset, he's going to talk to me like I am a kid. By taking me from very high. The prud'hommes, we'll take one. The goal is to minimize the damage. I do not appreciate this man but it would be according to my contacts, the best on the spot. So ... I shut up.

At the end of September, when I contacted the Canadian lawyer to prepare our defense in Quebec, bailiffs landed again in France. Too strong! Our opponents obtained the provisional seizure of the shares of the company from a judge in Amiens with the pretext that the Canadian lawsuit is overwhelming and won in advance and that of course they fear that the thug resells the company . The thug, that's me.

It's completely stupid. But as the Germans want to work with us under contract, the seizure of shares does not bother us. With hindsight, if I made a major mistake in the management of my business, this is it! It was necessary to appeal but in the context of working with the Germans, I neglected this aspect. The procedure in Quebec, Kojak's letter and the seizure of shares are only the necessary links to the next procedures. Insidious preliminaries that we did not understand.

Mid-October, in full technical euphoria with the Germans, the Amiens lawyer calls me. His good friend the Registrar of the Commercial Court informed him that there had been a judgment concerning us. Our opponents have in fact asked the Commercial Court to take precautionary measures and in particular to withdraw me any possibility of management of my company and to ask the guardianship with an ad hoc agent.

The president of the Commercial Court found this a little big despite the documents in the debate and declared inadmissible this procedure since we could not defend ourselves. Disbanding our opponents, he invites them to repeat the same procedure by summoning us. We begin to understand where they are coming from. The goal is to dispossess me of everything and to prevent any new contract and to be able to monitor my actions. And besides, they relaunch the procedure immediately. We are summoned in mid-November.

As long as the German contract works, I have no worries about the outcome of the proceedings. Moreover, on the Canadian side, we have finalized an answer with the lawyer from Montreal who dismantles one by one the fallacious arguments of Alex. With all the e-mails that we have been exchanging since 2004, it's pretty easy for me to dismantle his arguments. He is jubilant. Each piece is for him a small caviar. And we take advantage of the response to claim the $4.5 million that Alex forgot to pay us.

I brought my accountant who is a notable in Amiens. He audits the company. There is of course no misappropriation of money or even assets. He gives me the certificate and indicates that the company is doing well. At the hearing in Amiens, the Commercial Court, I meet for the first time the French lawyer Alex. I feel that he is intelligent, brilliant and full of relationships. The rosette on his jacket just confirms all that. During this meeting, I do not perceive that the conductor of the 17 ongoing or future trials is him and he has prepared everything for a year. Our eyes meet. I see in his eyes that I am a UFO. I'm young, I'm arrogant, I do not disassemble. My lawyer did not come in person. He sent a collaborator who assures me that everything is fine, his boss follows closely.

The Courts of Commerce have often been criticized. As far as I am concerned, this jurisdiction will be exemplary. All the time. And my opponents take a good slap! Not only, they are dismissed but are sentenced for abusive procedure to pay me 2000 Euros. That they will never pay of course ... On the penal level, I received a letter of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Amiens. The examining magistrate summoned me in February to hear me. This is good news but all that seems to me long ... While it would be necessary to launch some searches etc ... But hey, that's good news.

Christmas is coming ... If VALMY were to be summarized, there are two engineers, a secretary and four lawyers: two in France, one in Quebec and one in Luxembourg. And a lawyer costs more than an engineer. I have to renegotiate with the Germans. This is the top priority.

Continue to Chapter 21

Introduction
Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6
Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10 - Chapter 11 - Chapter 12
Chapter 13 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 18
Chapter 19