Cleary Gottlieb may have gone too far, reports Anthony Lin at the NYLJ when it spoke with a potential deposition witness.  Did they represent the Congo too strongly?

"Manhattan federal judge has sanctioned Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton for improperly trying to dissuade a witness from testifying about his dealings with the Republic of Congo, which the New York law firm is representing in a dispute with a foreign hedge fund.

In a opinion issued last week, Southern District Judge Loretta Preska said Cleary had acted in "bad faith" by contacting witness Médard Mbemba, a French-Congolese businessman and onetime close friend of Congolese President Denis Sassou-Nguesso, and telling him his participation in a deposition could "destabilize" or "hurt" Congo.

The judge also credited later testimony by the witness that he felt threatened by the warnings delivered by Cleary partner Jean-Pierre Vignaud, because he knew the lawyer had "privileged connections" in the Congolese government.

"[Cleary] has shown a willingness to operate in the murky area between zealous advocacy and improper conduct, and here it crossed the line," Judge Preska wrote in Kensington International Ltd. v. Republic of Congo, 03 Civ. 4578. She ordered that a formal reprimand be circulated to all of Cleary’s 950 lawyers and that the firm be assessed the attorney’s fees for the sanctions motion. "