MANILA, Philippines—The legal team of former president Rodrigo Duterte has filed an urgent request to appeal a decision by the International Criminal Court (ICC) Pre-Trial Chamber I allowing three Filipino lawyers to continue representing victims in his crimes against humanity case. In a filing made public over the weekend, Duterte’s lead counsel, Nicholas Kaufman, asked Pre-Trial Chamber I to grant leave to appeal its Feb. 20 ruling rejecting the defense's bid to disqualify lawyers Joel Butuyan and Gilbert Andres as Common Legal Representatives for Victims (CLRV), as well as Nicolene Arcaina as the CLRVs’ Case Manager. The defense's request centers on an alleged conflict of interest stemming from a past professional relationship. According to the filing, the core legal question is whether conflict-of-interest rules in the ICC’s Code of Professional Conduct apply only to current professional associations, or if they also extend to previous ones. “This issue directly affects not just the fairness of the present proceedings, but the fairness of all proceedings at the International Criminal Court and the deontology of all independent counsel appearing before this institution,” Kaufman wrote in the application. The defense argued that Arcaina’s previous role at CenterLaw, the firm where Butuyan and Andres are partners, creates an inherent structural imbalance. The filing suggests that her position as case manager could allow the victims’ legal team to access evidence in a way that is “structurally incompatible” with a fair trial. The defense described it as “incredible” that Butuyan and Andres were allegedly unaware of Arcaina’s background, and argued that allowing the arrangement to persist “contaminates the entire process.” However, in its nine-page decision rejecting the initial disqualification bid, the Chamber found no sufficient legal basis for their removal. The judges ruled that Article 12 of the ICC’s Code of Professional Conduct which was cited by the defense applies to counsel and their “associates,” but not to non-counsel team members such as a case manager. The Chamber also said the alleged conflict of interest remained speculative and was not substantiated by the defense. The judges further noted that the Office of the Prosecutor had informed the court it would not rely on the matter raised by the defense at the confirmation stage or during any potential trial, undermining the argument that the issue would affect the proceedings. In its latest request for leave to appeal, the defense argued that the Pre-Trial Chamber’s interpretation of the Code was illogical. Kaufman urged the Chamber to certify the issue for appeal, warning that without immediate intervention from the Appeals Chamber, the fairness of the entire process could be jeopardized. He also noted that the “eleventh-hour” appointment of the external representatives and the Chamber’s late handling of the issue had limited the defense's options. The confirmation of charges hearing, scheduled to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to send Duterte to trial for alleged crimes against humanity committed during his “war on drugs”, is set to begin on Monday, Feb. 23. In a separate ruling on Friday, the Chamber granted Duterte’s request to waive his right to be present at the hearing, meaning the proceedings will take place without him in the courtroom.