News october 2024: A supplier may prove and claim for the payment of its debt against an uncooperative client based on its sole issued invoices Reminder Proof is key whenever it comes to grounding one’s claim. And quite often, the burden of proof is heavy to bear. However, in some cases, it may be facilitated in the companies’ best interest. This is particularly reflected through a recent decision of the French Supreme Court (Cour de cassation) ruling of June 26, 2024 (n°22-24.487), which has confirmed the admissibility of elements such as invoices to substantiate a debt. In this case, the factual circumstances were as follows: The company Rubis Avignon...
Publié le 09/10/2024
February 2024 News: professional's liability in case of a hidden defect of the sold goods – 3 useful tips Reminder / Background: Pursuant to Article 1641 of the French Civil Code, the seller is compelled to guarantee the hidden defects of the sold product that: make such product unsuitable for the use for which it is intended. or which limits the product’s use to such an extent that the buyer would not have acquired it or would have acquired it at a lower price if he had been aware of these defects. A recent judgment of the Commercial Chamber of the Cour de Cassation (ie. French Supreme Court), dated 17 January 2024, in line with 4 former judgments of the Mixed Chamber (of...
Publié le 16/02/2024
September 2023 : may the indemnification (due for abrupt termination) be reduced if the victim of the termination has successfully reconverted? Context and Legal framework Who is concerned ? both the author and victim of an established business relationship Which regulation is at stake? What indemnification is due? Pursuant to article L.442-1-II of the French commercial code, may be held liable any person (manufacturer, supplier, distributor etc.) who terminates an established business relationship « abruptly, even partially » without complying with a written notice taking into account, among other parameters, the duration of the business relationship. ...
Publié le 02/10/2023
News June 2021: the importance of being earnest (!) and having clear and readable general terms between professionals Reminder: In the B2C universe, it is generally acknowledged that unclear general conditions of sale are unenforceable towards the client “consumer” (a font size smaller than 8 is generally excluded) and that vague, ambiguous or illegible provisions must be construed in the consumer’s best interest (article L.133-2 of the French consumer code). Familiar with those principles of readability and clarity required in consumer law, professionals may tend to forget that those same principles must also govern relations between professionals and the commercial documents...
Publié le 06/07/2021
News May 2021: Beware of clearly notifying the termination notice period of an established relationship in the event of recourse to a call for tenders.Reminder: According to article L.442-1 - II of the French Commercial Code (former article L 442-6, I, 5 °): “Any producer, trader, or service provider shall be held liable and obliged to make good the damage caused by abruptly breaking off an established business relationship, even partially, without prior written notice commensurate with the duration of the business relationship and consistent with the minimum notice period determined by the multi-sector agreements in line with standard commercial practices. (...)” If it is commonly acknowledged that the systematic recourse to...
Publié le 06/07/2021
News April 2021 : Two interesting decisions when prosecuted for the sudden termination of an established business relationshipReminder: According to article L.442-1 - II of the French Commercial Code (former article L 442-6, I, 5 °): “Any producer, trader, or service provider shall be held liable and obliged to make good the damage caused by abruptly breaking off an established business relationship, even partially, without prior written notice commensurate with the duration of the business relationship and consistent with the minimum notice period determined by the multi-sector agreements in line with standard commercial practices. (...)” What to remember: The two noteworthy judgments enshrine...
Publié le 06/07/2021
News September 2019: Beware of increasing fines for non-compliance with maximum payment terms!Quick reminder: Pursuant to article L.441-10-I of the French commercial code: the parties may not agree to payment terms exceeding 60 days as from the invoice issuance date. by derogation of the above, the parties can provide for a maximum payment term of 45 days end of month after the invoice issuance date, subject to the fact that this derogatory payment term is expressly provided for under the applicable contract and is not to be regarded as grossly unfair to the creditor. if nothing is specifically agreed upon between the parties re. the payment terms, the settlement date may, in no...
Publié le 06/09/2019
News January 2017: Infringing the legal cap on payment terms is now punishable by a fine of 2 million euros. In our article published in September 2016, we announced that the fines applicable in case of non-compliance with the legal French cap on payment terms would probably be increased. This has finally been implemented by Article 123 of law n°2016-1691 dated 9 December 2016 relating to transparency, fight against corruption and modernization of the economy, which has notably amended article L.441-6-I para. 9 of the French commercial code[1]. The main modifications related to the maximum payment terms – which have been validated by the French...
Publié le 21/02/2017
News September 2016 : The legal cap on payment terms in international contracts: The French Case This article, written by Sarah Temple-Boyer and published in the International Business Law Journal addresses the difficult co-existence between the constraint in France of a legal cap on payment terms and the privileged consensualim in international contracts. This material was first published by Thomson Reuters Limited, in Sarah Temple-Boyer, Le plafonnement légal des délais de paiement dans les contrats internationaux: l'exemple français - International Business Law Journal, n°3, 2016 - The legal cap on payment terms in international contracts:...
Publié le 05/10/2016
News: Unfair commercial practices - ineffective good faithUnfair commercial practices: the advertiser, even when acting in good faith, is solely liable in case of misleading commercial practices :...
Publié le 07/09/2015 | Mis à jour le 11/12/2015