Robert Falco (26 February 1882 – 14 January 1960) was a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

judge at the

Nuremberg trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies of World War II, Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945 ...

, who later sat in the

Cour de Cassation A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In t ...

Biography

Falco was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

into a Jewish family. His great-grandfather was decorated by Louis Philippe in 1831, and his maternal grandfather

Alfred-Philibert Aldrophe Alfred-Philibert Aldrophe (7 February 1834 – 29 October 1895) was a French architect. Biography Born in Paris, he worked on the Great Exhibitions held in the city in 1855 and 1867. As the architect of the Consistory of Paris, in 1867 he began ...

worked as an architect for

Leopold II of Belgium * german: link=no, Leopold Ludwig Philipp Maria Viktor , house = Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , father = Leopold I of Belgium , mother = Louise of Orléans , birth_date = , birth_place = Brussels, Belgium , death_date = ...

and Gustave de Rothschild. His father fought in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/71, for which he was made a member of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, and later became the President of the Paris commercial court. After the end of his legal studies Falco worked from 1903 as a barrister. In 1907 he gained his doctorate with a work on the ''Duties and Rights of Theatre Audiences'' and then worked as a judge at the court of chancery, but continued to plead until 1919. He was later appointed to the

Paris Court of Appeal The Court of Appeal of Paris (french: Cour d'appel de Paris) is the largest appeals court in France in terms of the number of cases brought before it. Its jurisdiction covers the departments of Paris, Essonne, Yonne, Seine-et-Marne, Seine-Saint-D ...

. He was dismissed from this post in 1940 because of his Jewish origin. During the preparation of the

Nuremberg Trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies of World War II, Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945 ...

in June 1945 in London at the International Conference on Military Trials he represented France together with

André Gros André — sometimes transliterated as Andre — is the French and Portuguese form of the name Andrew, and is now also used in the English-speaking world. It used in France, Quebec, Canada and other French-speaking countries. It is a variation ...

, professor of international law, and was one of the main authors of the London Charter of the International Military Tribunal, defining the procedures and protocols observed during the Nuremberg Trials, where he was one of the two French judges, as the alternative to

Henri Donnedieu de Vabres Henri Donnedieu de Vabres (8 July 1880 – 14 February 1952) was a French jurist who took part in the Nuremberg trials after World War II. He was the primary French judge during the proceedings, with Robert Falco as his alternate. Donnedieu wa ...

. On the basis of his work during the trials he was elected an Honorary Bencher of

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and W ...

in 1946. In 1947 Falco was reinstated in the French judiciary, at the

. He was awarded the

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

and made a Commander of the

. He died in Paris in 1960.

Memoirs

During the year he spent in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

, Falco kept notes which he later used in his memoirs of the trials. These memoirs remained unpublished for decades, but, illustrated with sketches by Jeanne Falco, the judge's second wife, who accompanied him throughout the trials, are due to be published in September 2012 under the title ''Juge à Nuremberg'' by Editions Arbre ble

with a preface by the historian Annette Wieviorka and an introduction by Guillaume Mouralis, an historian specialising in the history of international penal justice.Logeart, Agathe: ''Au cœur du procès - Un juge raconte'', ''

Le Nouvel Observateur (), previously known as (1964–2014), is a weekly French news magazine. Based in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris, it is the most prominent French general information magazine in terms of audience and circulation. Its current editor is Cécil ...

'', 10 November 2005; procès de Nuremberg, extraits des carnets de Robert Falc

Notes and references

Sources and external links

DER AUGENZEUGE Falco als Richter in Nürnberg

{{DEFAULTSORT:Falco, Robert 1882 births 1960 deaths 20th-century French judges Judges of the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg French judges of international courts and tribunals