Civil Law

In a decision published in the Bulletin on June 4, 2025, the Commercial Chamber of the Cour de Cassation (French Supreme Court) reaffirmed a fundamental principle of contract law: The determination of the price lies exclusively with the will of the parties or, where applicable, a third party designated by them – but never with the judge.

This decision highlights the importance of complying with Articles 1591 and 1592 of the French Civil Code, which respectively provide that the price must be determined and identified by the parties, or left to the determination of a third party expressly designated for that purpose.

In the business world, companies may suffer various forms of damage due to wrongful actions by competitors, partners, or other economic actors. Understanding the mechanisms of compensation is essential for businesses seeking to defend their interests.

It is, therefore, important to define the scope of compensable damage under French law, to identify the characteristics of damage that must be established to claim compensation, and to be aware of the types of damage for which companies can seek redress.

There are many legal cases and court decisions concerning the exclusion of shareholders because disputes between shareholders are frequent and the exclusion sensitive to implement practice. While judges ensure strict compliance with the terms and conditions that govern the exclusion of shareholders, some legal tricks do enable to circumvent the inflexibility of the rules of […]

Ordinance n°2016-131 of February 10, 2016 for the reform of contract law, the general regime of obligations and proof of obligations came into force on October 1, 2016. This reform was primarily aimed at codifying established and settled case-law principles but it also introduced new legal concepts and obligations. Law n° 2018-287 dated April 20, […]

While it did not drastically alter the changes brought about by Ordinance n° 2016-131 of February 10, 2016, the Ratification Law n° 2018-287 of April 20, 2018 did modify some aspects of French contract law and introduced a distinction between substantive amendments that will become effective as from the entry into force of the Ratification […]

In a decision rendered on July 2, 2014, the First Civil Chamber of the Cour de Cassation (French Supreme Court) confirmed its position and reaffirmed the principle according to which “the perpetrator of a damage must remedy all the consequences and the injured party is under no obligation to mitigate his/her loss in the interests […]