PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE JUDICIAL COURT

The trial in court

Civil proceedings before the judicial tribunal takes place in three phases: investigation, hearing and judgment.

Once the investigation has been completed by a judge, the case is heard. This can take place with or without a hearing, at the option of the parties.

The plaintiff's lawyer, the defence lawyer and the opinion of the public prosecutor are heard in order.

Unless an appeal is lodged, the judge's verdict closes the case.  

Appraisal phase

In civil matters, the investigation phase corresponds to the " repair "of the case before judgment. The magistrate checks that the parties exchange their documents and submissions (which summarise their claims and arguments). During the investigation, the parties may change their claims.

The Pre-Trial Judge, who examines the case on its merits, may also order certain investigative measures in order to ascertain the truth of a fact on which the resolution of the dispute depends. This may involve statements from third parties (witness statements) or measures carried out by a technician (expert reports).

He is also responsible for penalising parties who are too slow or who do not respect the adversarial principle. After a final exchange of arguments and exhibits, i.e. when the case appears ready to be heard, the judge issues an order closing the investigation and the case is sent back for hearing.

Debate phase

On the date set for oral argument, the case is called by the chairman, who opens the proceedings. At theoral argument hearingThe parties must be represented by their lawyers. Unless otherwise stipulated, civil hearings are public.

If the parties so wish, they may ask the judge to conduct the proceedings without a hearing. This is an exclusively written procedure, subject to the prior agreement of the parties. If a hearing is held, the plaintiff's lawyer is heard first, followed by the defendant's lawyer and, if necessary, the opinion of the public prosecutor.

In cases relating to parentage or the organisation of guardianship of minors, communication to the public prosecutor is required by law. The judge may also consider it useful to have the opinion of the public prosecutor's office on the application of the law in a case.

In cases where a lawyer is not required, the procedure is normally oral. In practice, however, litigants usually retain a lawyer and file written submissions.

Judgement phase

Deliberations can last several months when a dispute raises a complex legal issue. At the end, the court issues a judgment summarising the facts of the case and the claims and arguments of the parties. The court gives a reasoned legal ruling.

The judgment has the force of res judicata. Unless an appeal is lodged, it definitively closes the case.

What you also need to know (Court proceedings) :

What are the special procedures before the court?

There are three types of special proceedings before the judicial court:

-the fixed date summons procedure (motivated by the urgency of the dispute) ;

-the proceedings on application (in the absence of an opposing party) ;

and the procedure for non-contentious matters (where there is no dispute between the parties).  

I.- The fixed-date summons procedure

This procedure allows a plaintiff, who is authorised to do so by the president of the court because of the urgency of the dispute, to summon his or her adversary to appear before the court on a specific date, usually in the near future.

However, on the day of the hearing, the chairman ensures that sufficient time has elapsed since the summons was issued for the party summoned to have had time to prepare its defence.

This procedure differs from the referral in that it enables the merits of the dispute to be decided.

II. Proceedings on application

Proceedings on application allows the judge to give a non-adversarial decision when the claimant is justified in not calling his adversary.

For this procedure to be implemented, the applicant must justify the need to infringe the adversarial principle. For example, it may be legitimate for the usefulness of a measure not to inform the person concerned by it (an adultery report, for example).

The plaintiff must prove the existence of a legitimate reason to preserve or establish, before any trial, proof of facts on which the resolution of the dispute may depend.

In this context, the judge may make certain seizures or order an investigative measure. For example, by appointing a court commissioner to carry out an inspection.)

III. The non-contentious procedure

One of the specific procedures followed before the court is that relating to non-contentious matters.

The judge rules in the absence of any dispute. The procedure is not adversarial and the case is generally heard fairly quickly.

The judge may rule without debate.

If a hearing is held, it is not public and the public prosecutor must attend to give his opinion.

Once frequently used in family matters, this procedure is now in decline. It now concerns only a few residual situations (such as adoption).