Hervé Témime is "the advocate of the powerful". The 64-year-old penalist has a very select clientele: Bernard Tapie, Roman Polanski, Alain Afflelou, Hedi Slimane, Nathalie Baye, or even Catherine Deneuve once called upon his services. Richard Berry, who is sued by his daughter by his daughter Coline Berry for acts of incest which allegedly occurred during his childhood, also appealed to this famous advice. Just like Gérard Depardieu, who was indicted on December 16, 2020 for "rape" and "sexual assault". On Tuesday March 2, 2021, the board was also angry on the set of BFMTV, furious that the information leaked to the media after being kept secret for weeks: "It was miraculous and then boom the secrecy did not hold. The secrecy must hold, justice does not have to be done in the public square", he had explained.
Who is Hervé Temime?
Hervé Témime is above all a man of convictions. Born in Algiers in 1957, the criminal lawyer fought for a long time against the death penalty before it was abolished in 1981. Member of the Paris bar since 1983, the lawyer feels "like a fish in water" during his pleadings, as he confided on Thursday, March 18, 2021 in the magazine Gala. The advice goes even further: "I am never more myself than in an audience". The lawyer has a very healthy lifestyle: he does not drink, and does not smoke. His cute sin? The game, a passion he would take from his father, a former bridge champion. "Like him, I have what is called 'the sense of cards', he told Vanity Fair in 2020. But once in court, Hervé Témime does not leave it to chance. He's here to win. When he loses a case, nothing goes: "I blame myself for failure, I live it very badly, I suffer a lot, I feel guilty, I feel responsible. I think that is my main role as a lawyer.", he assured to Gala. For him, "To win is a relief. It's not a triumph."
Hervé Témime's family left Algeria when he was four years old, during the war. She then moved to Versailles."We were Jewish and proud to be, without being religious, but it was better if the neighbors didn't know", he explained to Vanity Fair. After studying law at the University of Sceaux, then at that of Assas, Hervé Témime pleaded a lot for drug dealers. Years later, in 1990, he became the advocate for the stars. It was his friendship with Jean-Louis Borloo, then mayor of Valenciennes which allowed him to access a high-end clientele : The politician was at the time in a relationship with Nathalie Baye, who secured his services. From there, everything went very quickly thanks to word of mouth. Master Témime has never changed his habits: "I hate social events. I don't go out, I eat lunch alone or with a friend, I never have a business dinner."
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