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

Res judicata has authority only if it has been the subject of a judgment, in other words, a decision that resolves in its operative part all or part of the main issue or rules on a procedural objection, a bar to proceedings, or any other incident . Thus, when ruling on jurisdiction, if the court resolves in the operative part the substantive issue on which this jurisdiction depends, its decision h …

Judicial decision resolving a dispute

Res judicata has authority only if it has been the subject of a judgment, in other words, a decision that resolves in its operative part all or part of the main issue or rules on a procedural objection, a bar to proceedings, or any other incident . Thus, when ruling on jurisdiction, if the court resolves in the operative part the substantive issue on which this jurisdiction depends, its decision has the authority of res judicata on the substantive issue . Similarly, a judgment that rules in its operative part on a bar to proceedings has the authority of res judicata concerning the dispute it resolves . The Court of Cassation also considers that the orders of the pre-trial judge ruling on a procedural objection or a bar to proceedings have the authority of res judicata, whether or not they terminate the proceedings . The authority of res judicata is also recognized for an irrevocable judgment .

On the other hand, the classification by the court of its decision, the decision of the bar council refusing re-registration on the roll, the report of non-conciliation, or judgments rendered in non-contentious matters do not constitute a judicial decision capable of being recognized with the authority of res judicata . Also lacking the authority of res judicata are decisions that merely dismiss the parties' claims , or judgments that have not resolved the counterclaims in their operative part . The authority of res judicata, attached only to the operative part of the decision, cannot be enforced when subsequent events have altered the situation previously recognized in court . The reasons, even if they are the necessary support of the operative part, do not have the authority of res judicata . Judgments that do not resolve any dispute and have no contentious nature, such as the decision of the enforcement judge rejecting a request to attach a penalty payment to an interim order , or the judgment designating a party as the pursuing party and instructing their lawyer to draft and file a schedule of conditions , which merely records a judicial contract  or acknowledges a party , are also devoid of judicial authority. However, it is not within the court's power to limit the authority of res judicata that the law attaches to a judgment resolving a dispute .

Finally, Article 482 of the Code of Civil Procedure primarily deprives a judgment that merely orders an investigative measure or a provisional measure in its operative part of the authority of res judicata. This applies to a judgment that orders, as a preliminary ruling, the reopening of proceedings .

Cass. 2e civ., 20 May 2010, LawLex202300011116JBJ.

Cass. soc., 23 September 2008, LawLex202200008241JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 17 November 2005, LawLex202300011076JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 4 June 2009, LawLex202300011100JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 26 September 2007, LawLex202300011095JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 27 January 1998, LawLex202300011008JBJ; Cass. 3e civ., 2 October 2002, LawLex202300011001JBJ.

Cass. soc., 3 December 2002, LawLex202300011009JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 15 October 2009, LawLex202300011010JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 30 April 2009, LawLex202300011096JBJ.

Cass. soc., 16 January 2008, LawLex202300011145JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 22 May 2003, LawLex202300011015JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 10 April 2013, LawLex202300011089JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 3 September 2015, LawLex202300011099JBJ; Cass. 1re civ., 16 May 2018, No LawLex202300011092JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 23 June 2016, LawLex202300008229JBJ; 9 January 2020, LawLex202300011104JBJ; 17 September 2020, LawLex202300011112JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 25 February 2010, LawLex202300011014JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 17 October 2013, LawLex202300011013JBJ.

Cass. 3e civ., 8 October 1996, LawLex202300011078JBJ.

Cass. ass. plén., 13 March 2009, LawLex202300011012JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 16 April 2015, LawLex202300011091JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 16 November 1983, LawLex202300011074JBJ; 17 May 1993, LawLex202300011075JBJ; Cass. 1re civ., 20 February 2007, LawLex202300011093JBJ; Cass. 2e civ., 13 October 2016, LawLex202300011109JBJ.

1. Ordinary Law of Civil Procedure

239. Judicial decision resolving a dispute

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

239. Judicial decision resolving a dispute

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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