IMF head Christine Lagarde guilty of negligence over French tycoon payout but avoids fine, prison term

Paris (AFP) - A French court on Monday found IMF head Christine Lagarde guilty of negligence over a massive state payout to a tycoon when she was French finance minister but spared her a fine or prison sentence.

The Court of Justice of the Republic found against Lagarde over her handling of a dispute between the state and flamboyant businessman Bernard Tapie, which ended in a 404-million-euro ($422 million) award for Tapie.

In a blow to her otherwise stellar career, the court rapped Lagarde for failing to contest the massive payment.

Crucially, however, the Paris court said exempted her from any penalty .... http://www.nytimes.com