French Consumer Law is a comprehensive and comparative overview of French and EU law in this field, covering: advertising, unfair commercial practices, conditions for the validity of contracts, unfair terms, product conformity, latent defects, product safety.

French Consumer Law

The offenses of deception, falsification and offenses relating to products are attributable both to natural and legal persons.
a)  Natural persons
The offender may be the importer of the product  or its manufacturer . Generally, this may be the de jure leader of a company, when he has given instructions to his employee  or has voluntarily refrained from carrying out the checks he had to perform  o …

Imputability of the offense

The offenses of deception, falsification and offenses relating to products are attributable both to natural and legal persons.

The offender may be the importer of the product  or its manufacturer . Generally, this may be the de jure leader of a company, when he has given instructions to his employee  or has voluntarily refrained from carrying out the checks he had to perform  or when he can only be held responsible for the offense given the extent of the maneuvers committed by his staff and in his establishment . The conviction can also concern a person who has acted as a de facto manager .

Unless otherwise provided by law, the criminal liability of a director of a company who has not personally  participated in the commission of the offense may, however, be excluded if the latter has granted a delegation of powers  or if the employee has acted in his capacity as an employee  in the normal course of his duties . Thus, a delegation of powers does not absolve the company executive when he has instructed his employees to carry out the vehicle's technical inspection only after the sale, in breach of his legal obligations . On the other hand, the offense cannot be attributed to the manager of a company, when he has delegated his powers to a director who has practiced the profession for many years, has sixteen persons under his responsibility, buys the goods and fixes their price without referring to anyone else . To exonerate himself, the director must prove that he has delegated his powers to a person with the necessary competence, authority and means to exercise them . Faced with such an argument, the court must verify the validity of the delegation of power. A monthly salary of EUR 1,500 is thus incompatible with the existence of a delegation of powers concerning the management of an establishment comprising five employees . Even if an employee may, due to a delegation of powers, be held accountable for the offense of deception committed in his premises, only his employer is responsible for the civil consequences of the offense .

As expressly provided by Article L. 441-1 (former Article 213-1) of the Consumer Code, a third party to the contract of sale can also be found guilty on this count .

Being an accomplice to an offense relating to the conformity of goods and services is also punishable .

Legal persons may be found guilty of fraud when a body or representative of the company has committed the offense on behalf of the legal person . The exact identity of this body or representative is irrelevant , as well as proof of the intention to commit the offense . Offenses committed both by a company through its directors, and by the directors as natural persons are not mutually exclusive, as the public prosecutor can prosecute either or both .

 Cass. crim., 10 December 1996, LawLex200300003116JBJ; 10 April 1997, lawLex20041145; 7 April 1999, LawLex200300003110JBJ; 4 February 2003, LawLex20033342; 6 April 2004, LawLex200400000972JBJ.

 Cass. crim., 2 February 2016, LawLex201600000362JBJ: for a laboratory producing a drug.

 Cass. crim., 29 January 2002, LawLex200300003321JBJ, upholding CA Limoges, 6 June 2001, LawLex200300004519JBJ.

 CA  Rouen, 24 September 1998, LawLex200400001200JBJ, Contrats Conc. Consom.

 Cass. crim., 11 March 1993, LawLex200300003876JBJ; LawLex200200000321JBJ; LawLex200600001632JBJ; LawLex200600001633JBJ; 21 February 2006, LawLex200600001663JBJJB; 2 October 2007, LawLex201200001746JBJ.

 CA Aix-en-Provence, 19 September 2001, LawLex200400000555JBJ.

 CA Amiens, 1 February 2000, LawLex200400001159JBJ, overturned by Cass. crim., 23 January 2001, LawLex200400001160JBJ.

  Cass. crim., 4 February 2003, LawLex200400000991JBJ. See, however, Cass. crim., 13 January 2004, LawLex200400001281JBJ (quashing CA Orléans, February 25, 2003, LawLex200400001289JBJ) finding complicity in such a scenario.

 Cass. crim., 16 December 1998, LawLex200200004396JBJ: a master franchisee becomes an accomplice in the offense of deception committed by his franchisee by transmitting to the latter, without prior verification of their compliance with the regulations, labels bearing false indications; 13 January 2004, LawLex200400001281JBJ; CA Paris, 24 September 2007, LawLex201200001960JBJ: the de jure leader of a company can also be convicted for complicity in fraud.

 Cass. crim., 8 January 2008, LawLex201200001744JBJ.

 Cass. crim., 1 December 2009, LawLex201200001714JBJ.

 CA Angers, 29 November 2007, LawLex201200001938JBJ.

 Cass. crim., 26 February 2002, LawLex200300003319JBJ.

 Cass. crim., 21 February 2006, LawLex200600001663JBJ.

 Cass. crim., 7 August 1990, LawLex200600001529JBJ; 2 October 2007, LawLex201200001745JBJ; CA Aix-en- Provence, 13 February 2008, LawLex201200001948JBJ: the falsification of oil weighing operations for the purpose of waiving any liability under the guarantee cannot be charged against a simple employee who has no delegation of power.

 CA Paris, 22 May 1990, LawLex200400001263JBJ, majority shareholder; CA Bordeaux, 23 March 1993, LawLex200400001211JBJ; Cass. crim., 22 June 1994, LawLex200400000015JBJ.

 Cass. crim., 2 October 1997, LawLex201200001746JBJ: the deliberations having appointed the accused as chief executive officer of a company having granted him a delegation of power, the exercise by him of functions of command, authority and representation, and the fact that he was aware of the regulations in force in on medicated feed, characterize the defendant's personal participation in the deception he was convicted of.

  Cass. crim., 29 June 2004, LawLex200500005612JBJ: in the presence of a delegation of powers to a sales manager, the head of the company's intention to deceive is not established.

 CA Paris, 19 September 2002, LawLex200400000331JBJ: an employee solely responsible for formulating, composing and naming the flavors produced by his company cannot be held responsible for offenses of deception and falsification committed at the stage of manufacturing and marketing of the finished products.

 Cass. crim., 23 January 2001, LawLex200400001160JBJ.

French Consumer Law

577. Imputability of the offense

Demandez un accès gratuit
au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise

Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

577. Imputability of the offense

Demandez un accès gratuit au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise

Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

Demandez un accès gratuit
au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise