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Sarkozy's bid to avoid court over funding dismissed
By EUobserver
France's highest appeal court, Cour de Cassation, on Tuesday rejected proposals from former president Nicolas Sarkozy to avoid facing trial over alleged illegal financing of his failed re-election campaign in 2012. Prosecutors says PR firm Bygmalion invoiced Sarkozy's UMP party rather than the president's campaign, allowing Sarkozy to spend almost double the permitted amount. Former president Jacques Chirac was given a suspended jail term in 2011 for misusing public funds.