Christine Lagarde burst through the glass ceiling at one of the world's leading institutions, becoming the first woman to head the International Monetary Fund.
Her ascension to the prestigious post marked the culmination of a meteoric rise for the French lawyer and former government minister, who began a second term as managing director of the IMF in July.
But her stellar career may have hit a snag.
On Friday a court will decide whether she will stand trial over a massive state payout to French tycoon Bernard Tapie in 2008 when she was economy minister.
The trailblazing 60-year-old, who is accused of negligence in the affair, says she has a "clear conscience."
"I've always acted in accordance with the law, and I've always had in mind the public interest," she told AFP in an interview in Washington earlier this month.
Her legal woes have done little to dent her popularity in France, where her name has long been bandied about as a possible contender for president.
In an interview with AFP earlier this month, she appeared to rule out any return to the political fray.
"I think I'm better suited to what I'm doing today than for the world of politics," she said.
A high-profile trial would be a blow to the unflappable finance czar, who patiently worked to restore the IMF's luster after the sex scandal that brought down her predecessor and fellow compatriot Dominique Strauss-Kahn in 2011.
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