Legal Insights

Parent companies and large companies acting as principals may be held liable in the event of a breach of their duty of vigilance.

This duty of vigilance takes into account inter alia the risks of environmental damage associated with the operations of these companies, as well as those of their subsidiaries, subcontractors or suppliers.

The debate as to which court is competent to assess a vigilance plan has just been definitively settled: The Paris Judicial Court (Tribunal Judiciaire de Paris) has exclusive jurisdiction to hear disputes over the duty of vigilance.

In a decision dated January 26, 2022, the Cour de Cassation (French Supreme Court) clarified that the presumption introduced by Article L. 1226-12 of the French Labor Code only applies if the redeployment position offered to an employee declared unfit for work is as comparable as possible to the position previously held by that employee, thereby imposing a duty of loyalty on the employer.

As early as 2016, the then Minister of Justice, Christiane Taubira, stressed the importance of criminal seizures in the legal arsenal.

The current interest in this process can be explained by the fact that it allows for a patrimonial penalty that deprives the perpetrator of the proceeds of his/her offense and, consequentially, of a title considered to be more fraudulent than legitimate.

However, the confiscation sometimes does not only affect the perpetrator of the offense but also a third-party owner of the seized property who has not committed any offenses.

The principle under French law is that financial dealings between France and foreign countries are unrestricted.

However, some investors making certain types of investments in so-called “sensitive” business sectors must follow a prior authorization procedure with the French Minister of the Economy.

The control of foreign investments in these business sectors has been significantly reinforced in recent years, especially since the outbreak of the health crisis resulting from the emergence and spread of COVID-19.

Law No. 2021-1104 of August 22, 2021 on combating climate change and strengthening resilience to its effects (the “Climate and Resilience Law”), adopted on July 20, 2021, was promulgated on August 24, 2021. Its provisions are inspired by the proposals of the Citizens’ Climate Convention. The final text includes 305 Articles in 8 Titles. Some […]

In a ruling dated December 15, 2021, the Cour de Cassation (French Supreme Court) upheld the decision of a Court of Appeals that had ordered an employer to pay back pay for variable remuneration, the objectives of which were neither realistic nor revised every year.

Variable remuneration, whenever provided for in the employment contract, is a component of the salary that makes it possible to determine compliance with the minimum salary provided for by law or the applicable collective bargaining agreement .

The payment of this variable remuneration is in principle conditional upon the achievement of annual objectives by the employee.