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Class actions à la française - Here we go!

By HMN & Partners.
7 October 2015

This has been a long-running story in French civil procedure, but now class action lawsuits are making their entry into French law.

On 12 February 2014, the French parliament passed legislation inserting Articles L.423-1 et seq. into the French Consumer Code, thereby introducing the class action procedure into our positive law.

Called upon to examine its constitutionality, the Constitutional Council validated the law, which was enacted on 17 March 2014. Implementing decrees are expected over the coming months. The law will therefore come into force the day after its publication in the Journal Officiel, which should happen during the summer of 2014.

This new type of action, which will only be heard by the Tribunaux de Grande Instance, also raises the question of fears and concerns, the outlook for the future and the impact on insurances policies.

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