José Sócrates’ defence team left it until the very last minute before submitting a formal request that a judge looks at their client’s case to see if there is a case to answer.
This legal step is unlikely to excuse the former prime minister from having to answer charges, including money laundering and corruption, as Sócrates is the star turn in Operation Marquês that has seen many of Portugal prominent businessmen and politicians investigated and charged.
The formal request arrived on Thursday night to ask a formal opinion as to whether the case will go to trial or not.
Sócrates lawyers want an investigating judge to look carefully at the prosecution's findings but the specific grounds of the application remain unknown.
The deadline for applications to have cases reviewed, pre-trial, was Monday but there was a three day extension, including fine, to Thursday.
By the Monday deadline, Henrique Granadeiro, Bárbara Vara, Zeinal Bava, Joaquim Barroca and the Lena Group companies (Lena SGPS, LEC SGPS and LEC SA) all has submitted applications for a pre-trial review.
On Tuesday there was a veritable flurry of requests sent by Hélder Bataglia, Rui Mano de Ferro, Gonçalo Ferreira and the Vale do Lobo Luxury Resort and Oceano Clube .
The last ones to arrive have been from José Paulo Pinto de Sousa, José Diogo Ferreira, Pepelan and Carlos Santos Silva. José Sócrates' application was the last to arrive and the time available has now closed.
There are 28 defendants in the Operation Marquês case. The next stage is for the trial judge to be selected - Carlos Alexandre or Ivo Rosa. The defendants want Rosa as Judge Alexandre has been involved in the case from day one so those involved fear biased rulings.
