Actualités

In a decision dated December 22, 2023, the French Supreme Court ruled on the possibility for a party to a litigation to communicate evidence secured in an unfair manner. Legal background In a 2011 decision (French Supreme Court – 7 January 2011 -Nr. 09-14.316), the French Supreme Court had ruled that any evidence obtained by […]

On February 23, 2022, the European Commission introduced a proposal for a directive on the companies’ duty of care in terms of sustainability. After much debate, the European Parliament and the Council finally agreed on a final text on December 14, 2023. The new directive aims at imposing an obligation on companies to monitor their

Background An employee used the fuel card provided by her employer while on holiday, even though the employer had only agreed to cover the fuel expenses incurred for business purposes. After being dismissed for gross misconduct, the employee challenged the validity of her termination before the Employment Tribunal. As a counterclaim, the employer required the

In a decision dated October 4, 2023, the Labour Division of the French Supreme Court ruled on the validity of an employee’s dismissal for breaches of the French highway code committed during the employee’s journey to work, while using the company car. In this case, an employee working as a mechanic was dismissed for misconduct

By signing a mutual termination agreement, the employer and the employee agree on the terms under which the employment contract shall be terminated (art. L.1237-11 of the French Labour Code). In a judgment dated November 15, 2023, the French Supreme Court has answered the following question: can a mutual termination agreement be validly signed if

According to article L.1152-2 and article L.1152-3 of the French Labour Code, any sanction (including a dismissal) against somebody who was a victim of harassment or who reported it is invalid. In most cases, the link between the sanction and the harassment or reporting of harassment is not explicit. Especially, the dismissal letter often does

In this case, following the resignation of an employee, her former employer brought an action before the Employment Tribunal on the grounds that she had failed to comply with her non-competition undertaking. The Court of Appeal ruled that such a clause was lawful and released the company from the obligation to pay the financial consideration.

The French Supreme Court, in a ruling dated October 11, 2023, strongly reiterates the fundamental nature of using the French language when establishing any norm applicable to employees. As a reminder, the French Labor Code provides that “the internal regulations are written in French. They may be accompanied by translations in one or more foreign

The French Labour Code contains specific provisions regarding senior executives (“cadres dirigeants”) which are not subject to working time constraints such as a working time ceiling or monitoring of working time (article L.3111-2 of the French Labour Code). The term ‘senior executive’ is strictly defined by French Law and the French supreme court regularly reminds

On July 21, 2023, the French State Administrative Court (“Conseil d’Etat”) ruled on an important aspect concerning job protection plans (or “PSE” for “Plans de sauvegarde de l’emploi”). The case at stake involved a company operating a network of self-service restaurants, which decided to close several restaurants, resulting in 80 job eliminations. The company implemented a unilateral