Introduction

Role of the parties

Role of judge

Contentious matters

Concept

Powers of the judge

Principle of adversarial proceedings

Non-contentious matters

Underlying principles of civil proceedings

Right to bring civil action

Abuse of the right to bring proceedings

Type of action

Concept of action

Interest in bringing proceedings

Standing

Rules governing action

Legal action

Initial claim

Counterclaim

Additional claim

Intervention

Incidental claim

Interruption of limitation period

Application to file suit (demande en justice)

Defense on the merits

Procedural objections (exceptions de procédure)

Procedural bars to admissibility (fins de non-recevoir)

Defenses

Nature of claim

Amount of the claim

Jurisdiction ratione materiae

Principles

Exceptional territorial jurisdiction

Extension of jurisdiction

Territorial jurisdiction

Competent court

Formal requirements

Substantive requirements

Presentation of the QPC (Question prioritaire de constitutionnalité)

Referral to Court of Cassation

Referral to Constitutional Council

Referral of the QPC

Investigation procedure

Conduct of hearing

Decision of the Constitutional Council

Proceedings before Constitutional Council

Priority question of constitutionality (QPC)

Simplified case preparation procedure

Participative procedure for case preparation purposes

Extra-judicial case preparation

Recourse to technical expert

Agreements on extra-judicial case preparation (mise en état)

Disclosure of exhibits

Production of documents

Exhibits

Common provisions for investigations

Rules specific to each investigation

Investigative measures

Disputes concerning private deeds (actes sous seing privé)

Forgery procedure against authentic instruments

Challenges to documentary evidence

Oath sworn as decisive evidence

Oath tendered by way of supplementation

Judicial oath

Administration of evidence

Hearings

Deliberations

Judgment

Formation

Judgment after adversarial proceedings

Judgment by default or judgment after trial

Contentious or non-contentious judgment

Judgment on the merits or provisional ruling (avant dire droit)

Combined judgment

Provisional judgment

Judgment in fast track proceedings

Types

Joinder and severance of proceedings

Interruption of proceedings

Suspension of proceedings

Discontinuance of proceedings (extinction)

Procedural incidents

Plea of lack of jurisdiction

Recusal/Dismissal for legitimate suspicion

Challenging the judge's competence

General rules

Voluntary intervention

Compulsory intervention

Joinder in proceedings (intervention)

Existence of a judgment

Same subject matter, cause, and parties

Authority of res judicata

General conditions of enforcement

Provisional enforcement

Grace period

Enforcement of the judgment

Bearing of costs

Order to pay non-recoverable costs

Verification/Recovery

Claims/Disputes

Costs and expenses

Ordinary remedies

Extraordinary remedies

Remedies

Judgments

Calculation of time-limits

Acts of judicial commissioners

Service of documents

Ordinary notification

Notification between lawyers

International notification

Place of notification

Notification

Communication by electronic means

Procedural acts

1. Ordinary Law of Civil Procedure

Pursuant to Article 700, para. 1, of the Code of Civil Procedure, “the court orders the party liable for costs or who loses the case to pay the other party the amount it determines for expenses incurred and not included in the costs (1°) and, where applicable, to the lawyer of the beneficiary of partial or total legal aid, an amount for fees and expenses not included in the costs, which the beneficiary of the aid would have incurred if they had not received this aid (2°).”

If each party is liable for a portion of the costs under Article 696 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the court may apply the provisions of Article 700 of the same code in favor of one of them . The award of non-recoverable costs may also occur in proceedings that exclude the award of costs .

Article 700 is part of the implementation of the principle of free access to justice (Art. L. 111-2 COJ). The indemnity provided under Article 700 has a distinct purpose from that of costs . It has a compensatory nature . Costs not included in the expenses do not constitute a reparable damage within the meaning of Article 1240 of the Civil Code and can only be reimbursed based on Article 700 CPC . A condemnation under Article 700 does not require the finding of a dilatory or abusive appeal, nor even a simple fault on the part of the condemned party . No legal or regulatory provision exempts the beneficiary of legal aid from the application of Article 700. The losing party may be condemned under Article 700 with respect to the voluntary intervener in the proceedings whom it had not summoned . To ensure access to law and equal access to justice, Article 700, paragraph 2, specifies that, in all cases, the court takes into account the equity or economic situation of the condemned party and may, even ex officio, for reasons based on the same considerations, decide that there is no need for such condemnations.

It has been ruled that appellate courts, when ruling on referral after cassation, may consider, for awarding compensation under Article 700, not only the proceedings that took place before them but also the previous proceedings related to the same dispute . Article 700 does not apply to amounts paid to a lawyer in the context of a procedure outside the proceedings: it only applies to amounts incurred during the proceedings and not included in the costs . Thus, the court cannot award a sum of money under Article 700 for expenses incurred for the purposes of a previous procedure . However, it does not have to establish that the non-recoverable costs have been previously paid . The assessment of the existence , the burden , and the amount of non-recoverable costs falls within its sovereign , and even discretionary , power. However, the court cannot dismiss the claim under Article 700 based on an irrelevant reason .

If the claimant in the proceedings withdraws and the opponent, who had not yet submitted, requests only compensation based on Article 700, this request must be rejected. The Second Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation thus specified that in the event of the claimant's withdrawal from the appeal, the request made under Article 700, which solely aims to obtain compensation for costs incurred for the purposes of the proceedings and not included in the expenses, does not constitute a cross-appeal and therefore cannot be granted . However, the withdrawal from proceedings, unless otherwise agreed, includes the obligation to pay the costs of the terminated proceedings, and the judge may order the claimants to pay compensation based on Article 700 of the new Code of Civil Procedure .

Cass. 2e civ., 3 January 1980, LawLex202300014321JBJ; 20 June 1984, LawLex202200005339JBJ; 27 June 2013, LawLex202300011272JBJ.

Cass. soc., 20 July 1978, LawLex202200008214JBJ; Cass. com., 22 July 1986, LawLex202300014318JBJ; 23 February 1988, LawLex202300011271JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 2 March 2001, LawLex202300014319JBJ; Cass. soc., 25 September 2001, LawLex202300014317JBJ.

Cass. com., 8 December 1992, LawLex202300011291JBJ.

Cass. 3e civ., 22 June 1982, LawLex202300011297JBJ.

Cass. civ. 3, 23 March 1988, LawLex202400003907JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 15 June 1988, LawLex202300011298JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 13 February 1980, LawLex202300011289JBJ; Cass. soc., 3 October 1980, LawLex202300011290JBJ; Cass. com., 26 January 1982, LawLex202300011268JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 23 May 1978, LawLex202300011326JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 6 March 2003, LawLex202200005824JBJ.

Cass. com., 10 October 2000, LawLex202400003908JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 1 June 1988, LawLex202300011327JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 20 March 1992, LawLex202300011317JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 15 February 1984, LawLex202400003909JB.

Cass. com., 26 January 1982, LawLex202300011268JBJ; Cass. 3e civ., 26 April 1984, LawLex202200005353JBJ.

Cass. 3e civ., 3 January 1980, LawLex202300014322JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 8 July 2004, LawLex202300011270JBJ.

Cass. soc., 21 February 1979, LawLex202300011292JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 23 June 1982, LawLex202300011269JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 11 September 2013, LawLex202300014323JBJ.

Cass. 3e civ., 12 July 1988, LawLex202300011295JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 16 July 1992, LawLex202300011294JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 19 November 1986, LawLex202300011293JBJ.

252. Order to pay non-recoverable costs