The Stalingrad legal defense is a strategy usually used by a defendant to wear down the plaintiff or legal proceedings by appealing every ruling that is unfavorable to the defendant and using whatever other means possible to delay proceedings. Typically a meritorious case is not presented by the defendant. The term comes from the World War II era Battle of Stalingrad where the Soviet Union won the battle by wearing down attacking German forces over the course of 5 months.
A notable use of this legal defense strategy was by former South African president Jacob Zuma in attempting to avoid giving testimony before the Zondo Commission into state corruption. Zuma used a number of legal challenges, medical delays, private prosecutions, and other means to attempt to cause the commission to run out of time before he would have to appear before it.
References
- ^ "Stalingrad Defense Law and Legal Definition | USLegal, Inc". definitions.uslegal.com. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
- "Using Stalingrad Tactics To Delay Justice". Judges Matter. June 19, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
- Thamm, Marianne (September 22, 2022). "AGE OF ACCOUNTABILITY ANALYSIS : Zuma's still-mysterious 'medical condition' weaponised to prosecute journalist accused of disclosing it". Daily Maverick. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- Corcoran, Bill. "Zuma employing 'Stalingrad defence' as legal stalling strategy". The Irish Times. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
- Powell, Cathleen (November 19, 2020). "South African judge has refused to step down from corruption probe: this was the right call". The Conversation. Retrieved November 27, 2020.