Business Contracts

As stipulated in Article 2002 of the Civil Code: “When the agent has been appointed by several persons for a common purpose, each of them is jointly and severally liable to the agent for all the effects of the agency agreement”. 
As an exception to ordinary civil law, which does not presume joint and several liability , these provisions provide for joint and several liability between co-principals …

Joint liability of co-principals

As stipulated in Article 2002 of the Civil Code: “When the agent has been appointed by several persons for a common purpose, each of them is jointly and severally liable to the agent for all the effects of the agency agreement”. 

As an exception to ordinary civil law, which does not presume joint and several liability , these provisions provide for joint and several liability between co-principals in the case of multiple principals for the same agency agreement.

As a result of this article, which is rarely invoked, trial courts use their discretion to assess the scope and value of evidence adduced as to the joint nature of the case, within the meaning of Article 2002 of the Civil Code . Thus, a court of appeal cannot refuse to declare the joint and several liability of a property owner and developers for non-performance of their obligations towards the real estate agents responsible for the sale of plots of land, without investigating whether the agents had not been appointed by the sellers for a  shared business purpose . 

appointed by the sellers for a shared business purpose. 

Thus, in the exercise of its discretionary power, a court of appeal was able to hold that the facts relied on by the agent were the obvious consequence of the manufacturing activity of the undertaking alleged to be the principal, so that the latter's status as co-principal, within the meaning of Article 2002 of the Civil Code, was not established . On the other hand, the courts were able to consider that, since the father of the groom had appointed a company to implement the wedding reception, and the son, in his dual capacity as groom and guest, had directly and personally benefited from the results of the negotiations, to which he could not have remained a stranger, they had appointed said company as agent for a joint venture, so that they were jointly and severally liable to the latter by virtue of the joint interests existing between them . Similarly, a company and its de facto manager must be held jointly and severally liable for payment of the cost of work ordered by the latter's agent, since it is clear from the circumstances, namely the company's tacit ratification of its manager's initiatives, that both were jointly and severally liable for the debt, in accordance with the provisions of Article 2002 of the Civil Code .

Art. 1310, Civil Code: “ Joint and several liability is legal or contractual; it is not presumed”.

Cass. 2e civil, 9 October 1991, LawLex202300013905JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ, 27 April 1971, LawLex202200009574JBJ.

Cass. com. 2 May 1990, LawLex202300013906JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ, 22 November 1989, LawLex202300009043JBJ.

Cass. 3e civ, 1 July 1971, LawLex202200009573JBJ.

Business Contracts

494. Joint liability of co-principals

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Les notions juridiques connexes

494. Joint liability of co-principals

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise