The Cairo Appeals Court turned down Wednesday a request to replace the judges handling the trial of former President Hosni Mubarak and fined the lawyers who made the request, according to state-run news agency MENA.
The court slapped the lawyers with a LE6000 fine, MENA reported.
Mubarak, his two sons, Alaa and Gamal, former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly and six former security officials are facing charges of corruption and involvement in murdering protesters during the January uprising that brought about Mubarak's resignation in February.
Judge Ahmed Refaat has presided over the trials since they began in August.
In September, one of the plaintiffs' lawyers requested Refaat and his assistants be replaced, arguing that they were not neutral and had blocked the plaintiffs' lawyers from attending key sessions, such as the testimony of Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi. Lawyers representing protest victims' families also said they were not given enough time to question witnesses.
A panel of judges from the Cairo Appeals Court considered the replacement request over several sessions, starting on 26 September, but bowed out on 29 October.
The criminal court headed by Refaat announced on 30 October it would not convene until 28 December, saying the appeals court had to decide on the motion to replace the judges.
A second panel from the same appeals court was tasked with making the decision. Mubarak's trial is expected to resume now that the panel has rejected the request.
Since Mubarak’s resignation, Egyptian activists have staged several protests decrying the lengthy trial process for Mubarak and other former regime figures.
