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

The expert must inform the court of the progress of their operations and the diligences performed by them (Art. 273 CPC). The parties are required to promptly provide the expert with all documents that the expert deems necessary for the fulfillment of their mission. In case of default by the parties, the expert must inform the court, which may order the production of the documents, if necessary un …

Progress of operation

The expert must inform the court of the progress of their operations and the diligences performed by them (Art. 273 CPC). The parties are required to promptly provide the expert with all documents that the expert deems necessary for the fulfillment of their mission. In case of default by the parties, the expert must inform the court, which may order the production of the documents, if necessary under penalty payment , or, if applicable, authorize the expert to proceed regardless or to submit their report as is. The trial court may draw any legal consequence from the failure to disclose documents to the expert (Art. 275 CPC). In case of a dispute between a party and the appointed technician, the judge responsible for oversight is solely competent to decide which documents must be disclosed .

According to Article 276 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the expert must take into account the observations or claims of the parties, and, when they are written, attach them to his opinion if the parties request it. Thus, the expert must submit the statement annexed to the report to the parties to allow them to discuss it adversarially before him prior to the submission of his report . He is obliged to summon the parties to all expert meetings , which is enforceable only against the parties who were summoned or represented, even if the court deemed that the explanations provided by the parties would have been superfluous and would not have clarified the disputed issues .

When a deadline has been set for the parties to submit their observations or claims, the expert is not required to consider those made after the expiration of this deadline, unless there is a serious and duly justified reason, in which case the expert reports it to the court. Furthermore, when written, the parties' final observations or claims must briefly recall the content of those previously submitted. Failing this, they are deemed to have been abandoned by the parties. Finally, the expert must mention in their opinion the response given to the observations or claims presented. The failure to comply with the formalities prescribed by Article 276 of the Code of Civil Procedure, having a substantial nature, results in the invalidity of the expert opinion only if the party invoking it proves the prejudice caused by this irregularity .

When expert operations require the insights of a person other than the expert, the expert may take the initiative to seek the opinion of another specialist only in a field distinct from their own (Art. 278 Code of Civil Procedure). They may only gather their opinion and not have them conduct expert operations that fall within their mission . The expert may also be assisted in carrying out their mission by a person of their choice who acts under their supervision and responsibility (Art. 278-1 Code of Civil Procedure).

Throughout the execution of expert operations, the expert must report any difficulties encountered to the court, which may, upon ruling, extend the deadline within which the expert must provide their opinion (Art. 279 Code of Civil Procedure). These may be difficulties that hinder the execution of their mission, require an extension of their mission, or render their mission moot (Art. 279 and 281 Code of Civil Procedure).

Finally, since expert assessment is an expensive measure, it can lead to significant expenses for the expert when it involves a complex case. Thus, in such a scenario, the expert may be authorized to take an advance on the deposited sum, provided that the progress of the expert operations is justified (Art. 280, para. 1, Code of Civil Procedure). According to Article 280, paragraph 2, of the Code of Civil Procedure, “in the event of a manifest insufficiency of the allocated provision, in view of the diligences carried out or to be carried out, the expert shall promptly report to the judge, who, if necessary, orders the deposit of an additional provision at the expense of the party he determines. If the deposit is not made within the time and according to the terms set by the judge, and unless this period is extended, the expert submits his report as is.”

In the event of conciliation between the parties, the expert's mission having become moot, “the parties may request the court to give enforceable effect to the document expressing their agreement” (Art. 281, para. 2, CPC).

Cass. 2e civ., 9 July 2009, LawLex202300007086JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 16 July 1979, LawLex202300005190JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 1 February 2012, LawLex202200005766JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 9 June 1982, LawLex202300003276JBJ.

Cass. 1re civ., 21 July 1976, LawLex202300003277JBJ.

Cass. com., 18 February 1992, LawLex202300005925JBJ.

Cass. 2e civ., 19 February 1997, LawLex202300005338JBJ.

1. Ordinary Law of Civil Procedure

169. Progress of operation

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

169. Progress of operation

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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