The trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity of a former president, Charles Taylor, entered its final stage when both defence and prosecution lawyers presented their closing arguments at the International Criminal Court in The Hague in early March. This follows the resumption of the trial following the resolution of the dispute between the three judges and Mr Taylor's defence lawyer, Courtenay Griffiths, over the timing of the submission of his final arguments (March 2011, The political scene). Mr Griffiths was allowed by the judges to present his closing arguments and summing-up, and apologised to them for his contempt of court in walking out over the issue. As part of his closing statement he commented again on the views of the defendant and his defence team regarding the politicised nature of the trial. Although the outcome of the trial is uncertain, some observers fear that the prosecution has not presented its case conclusively, while the defence has been surprisingly robust, leaving open the possibility that Mr Taylor could be acquitted on at least some of the 11 counts on which he is accused.