[JURIST] Judges, lawyers, and court clerks went on strike in France Thursday to protest a proposal to eliminate 319 French courts. French Justice Minister Rachida Dati [official profile, in French; BBC profile] has proposed the cutbacks, which the Magistrates' Trade Union says has been mishandled by Dati and the Justice Department. DPA has more.

Dati has been involved in several controversies since being appointed [IHT report] to French Prime Minister Nicholas Sarkozy's cabinet in May. A group of judges threatened to revolt [JURIST report] in September over Dati's "authoritarian" management style. Dati also has the dubious distinction of being the first Justice Minister to be called before France's Higher Judicial Council [official website] after she sparred with a prosecutor who publicly criticized her proposal to toughen the French criminal code [official text, in French].