Duterte lawyer hit for ‘frivolous’ appeals

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March 16, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Lawyers representing victims in the crimes against humanity case against former president Rodrigo Duterte at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have accused the defense team of filing “frivolous” appeals that they said waste the court’s time and resources.

In a 14-page filing dated March 12 and made public over the weekend, lawyers Joel Butuyan and Gilbert Andres, appointed as external common legal representatives of victims (CLRV), urged ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I to reject the latest request for leave to appeal filed by defense lawyer Nicholas Kaufman.

Kaufman sought permission to appeal the chamber’s earlier dismissal of his request to disqualify Butuyan, Andres and their appointed case manager Nicolene Arcaina.

“The Defense bemoans the lack of time it has had to raise issues for appeal on this matter and denies responsibility for the timing of its submissions. Yet, Counsel can indeed be held responsible for making frivolous leaves for appeal, particularly as it implicates the solemn undertaking by all counsel before the Court,” read Butuyan and Andres’ filing.