Full Throttle

As back ground, the French legal system is based entirely on written civil law. The system of administrative law was laid down by Napoleon and is appropriately called the code Napoléon (Napoleonic code).

Not to mention influencing administrative and judicial foundations for much of Western Europe.

I find myself slightly amused a judicial system founded by Napoléon, and considered a tyrant by most of his opponents has over ruled a decision handed down by an FIA then ruled by its own tyrant, known around these parts as Max “The Littlest Perv” Mosley.

As most should know by now that’s exactly what happened as a Paris court on Tuesday ruled in favor of former Renault boss Flavio Briatore, overturning a lifetime suspension from motor sports imposed by Formula One’s governing body, FIA.

The high court, (Is that high as in High Court, or high as a kite court?) “ruled the sanction illegal,” citing “irregularities” in FIA’s decision in September to ban Briatore for allegedly ordering Nelson Piquet junior to crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

The court said it judged “irregular the September 21, 2009 decision of the world council of the FIA regarding its rulings concerning Messrs Briatore and Symonds.”

For their part the new and supposedly improved FIA under the hand of Jean Todt responded to the court verdict late by insisting that it will not reverse its decision until it exhausts all appeal avenues.

Well good for them.

Say what you will about the FIA, and for lack of a better term its “judicial arm” the WMSC has done a reasonable, if not a dictatorial job at times of running the sport all these many years.

It should also be noted this ruling is based on a technicality, not on the guilt or innocence of Flavio or Symonds. The court ruled because the two did not hold FIA licenses as drivers do they had no authority to impose bans upon Briatore and Symonds “are therefore not subject to any FIA rules.”

That I suspect will be remedied at the next meeting in Paris. Standby all you team principals, and various and assorted hangers on, your going to be slapped with a licensing fee.

Assuming this isn’t turned over via an appeal the sole remaining party serving any “time” is the Renault team itself whose operating under a two year probation as a result of the scandal.

Flavio and Symonds are off scott free and Nelson “I wanna be a NASCAR Star” Piquet received immunity for ratting out the bosses.

French justice, the three perps walk free and the team is soldiering on under threat of the slightest slip-up and they are yanked before the WMSC for revocation of probation.

The little tyrant Napoléon would have loved it. The rest of us, not so much.

UPDATE: 01/07/10, Flavio Briatore is considering taking legal action against Nelson Piquet Jnr and his father after his court triumph in Paris on Tuesday. Former Renault team principal Briatore may take on the Piquets after they blew the whistle on the Crashgate row.

Asked if he would now take action, Briatore said: “That’s very likely. The bad that has been done to me won’t be forgotten in one day.”

Forgive me for being stupid but wouldn’t Flavio suing his co-conspirator be about the same as Nixon suing Halderman?

Or Brutus suing a group of his fellow senators, and co-conspirators, after the assassination of Caesar?