Legal opinion says Valérie Dittli’s hearing rights were violated

Vaud State Councillor Valérie Dittli is challenging the Meylan report, according to SRF. A legal opinion she commissioned says the Vaud government seriously violated her right to be heard.

The Meylan report was published on April 24. It said Dittli had signed an agreement with the former president of a commission responsible for agricultural land matters. According to the report, she secured a mandate for the man and arranged for him to receive 10,000 Swiss francs in public funds. In return, the commission president allegedly agreed not to file a criminal complaint.

The public prosecutor subsequently opened a criminal investigation into Dittli. Two legal experts commissioned by her have now examined whether the government of Vaud canton complied with the procedural guarantees required under administrative law.

In a personal statement, Dittli said the legal opinion concluded that her right to be heard had been “seriously violated”. It identified procedural shortcomings, including insufficient opportunity for Dittli to present her case, deadlines that were too short and an infringement of her human dignity.

In addition to the case linked to the Meylan report, prosecutors are investigating in a separate case whether Dittli abused her office. A case concerning an alleged breach of official secrecy has been discontinued.