Bakers accused of perverting the course of justice in Mexico

Baker & McKenzie, alongside its client Yahoo, has been accused of perverting the course of justice in Mexico and arranging for a secret meeting between two judges.

Yahoo and its lawyers are being sued in Mexico ChameleonsEye

The claim surrounds a Yahoo appeal to a 2012 US$2.7 damages award, made against Yahoo in favour of Mexican companies including Worldwide Directories. The Mexicans had claimed that Yahoo failed to  honour contracts relating to a directory service.

Secret meeting

The plaintiffs allege that, before a decision was given on Yahoo’s appeal to this award, Yahoo and its lawyers arranged for a secret meeting between a senior Mexican judge and the appellate judge. They claim that the senior judge had a decisive influence on the appellate judge, ‘intimidating her and ultimately directing her and her panel to enter a corrupted judgement in favour of Yahoo’. The appeal court went on to reduce damages to US$172,500 and awarded damages of US$3m in a counter claim, according to the law suit filings by the plaintiffs. Sources: Bloomberg Legal Week

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