10 instead of 15 months

Supreme Court decides on verdict against Karmasin

The court in front of the high court judges will remain empty on Wednesday.(Bild: Anja Richter)

The decisive round for former minister Sophie Karmasin took place today at the Palace of Justice in Vienna. On May 23, 2023, the 57-year-old was acquitted and sentenced in Vienna Landl. Both the WKStA and her lawyers contested the verdict. The defense lawyers were successful: the Supreme Court reduced the sentence from 15 to ten months conditionally.

At the end of May 2023, former Family Minister Sophie Karmasin was sentenced to 15 months' conditional imprisonment at the Vienna Regional Court for agreeing to restrict competition. The 57-year-old was acquitted of serious fraud in the form of unlawful continued remuneration payments - she made amends in good time.

In addition to the WKStA, Karmasin's defense lawyers Norbert Wess and Philipp Wolm(www.kw-anwaelte.com) also filed an appeal for annulment against the decision of the court of first instance. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court in Vienna dealt with the appeal in public. In the absence of the opinion pollster, who is ill.

Wess: "There was no competition"
During the hearing, Karmasin's lawyer Norbert Wess questioned whether the award procedure for the incriminated studies had been carried out in accordance with the law: "The situation at the ministry was unfortunate. They always wanted to award the contract to Ms. Karmasin," he explains. Only after everything had been discussed and agreed was she asked to obtain two comparative offers. Agreements restricting competition were condemned. But: "Where no competition is opened up, no competition can be violated," says Wess.

The seat in front of the highest judges will remain empty on Wednesday(Bild: Anja Richter)

The WKStA, on the other hand, is of the opinion that the acquittal in relation to the continued payment of remuneration was not justified. According to the corruption prosecutors, Karmasin's active remorse was too late and incomplete. 

Important mitigating factors not taken into account
According to the Advocate General of the Procurator General's Office, who had her say after Wess, neither the prosecution's appeal for annulment nor that of the defense was justified. The highest judges of the five-member senate announced their verdict at 11:15 a.m.: Karmasin's sentence for the anti-competitive measures was reduced from 15 to ten months conditionally.

"Two important mitigating factors were not taken into account. The defendant's previously blameless conduct and the fact that she had already suffered disadvantages as a result of the offense," explains Supreme Court Judge Rudolf Lässig. "The sentence should therefore be reduced in any case. For us, a ten-month conditional sentence seems appropriate." The former member of the government has therefore now been finally sentenced.