Chapter II: The Public Prosecutor's Office

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Article D15-2-1

French Code of Criminal ProcedureIn force
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Updated 6 Nov 2023

The Public Prosecutor sends the Attorney General the annual criminal policy report on the application of the law and the general instructions, as well as the annual report on the activity and management of his Public Prosecutor's Office, provided for in the second paragraph of

article 39-1

, before 31 January of the year following the year to which they relate.

The information contained in these two reports may be combined in a single report.

To this report or these reports shall be annexed or incorporated the report provided for in the third paragraph of Article 41 concerning police custody measures and police custody premises, which is drawn up by the public prosecutor in the light of, in particular, the information and statistics sent to him for this purpose by the criminal investigation departments and units within his jurisdiction, as well as the report on the status and timeframes for the enforcement of sentences provided for by l'article 709-2.

The public prosecutor communicates his report(s) to the president of the judicial court, for distribution to the judges before the next general meeting of judges and public prosecutors, during which he informs this meeting of the conditions of implementation, in his jurisdiction, of criminal policy and the general instructions sent to him for this purpose by the Minister of Justice.

Mariela Petrova

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Working with a corporate lawyer in France — Q&A

Any time a strategic decision changes how the company is owned, governed or contractually bound — incorporation, fundraising, M&A, restructuring, shareholder agreements, or major commercial contracts. Earlier engagement always costs less than later remediation.

A notary (notaire) is a public officer who authenticates specific deeds (mainly real-estate transfers and certain family-law acts). A corporate lawyer (avocat) advises on strategy, negotiates and drafts company documents, and represents you in disputes. The two roles complement rather than overlap.

Yes — most of our clients are foreign suppliers, investors or holding entities. We bridge the gap between French law and your home jurisdiction's expectations and deliver everything bilingually.

The SAS (Société par Actions Simplifiée) is the default choice for most international structures: flexible governance, single shareholder allowed, no minimum capital, and works cleanly with foreign holding entities. We assess SARL, SA, SCI on the merits when the situation calls for it.

Yes — communications with a French avocat are protected by the secret professionnel (Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971). This protection is broader than the common-law attorney-client privilege and applies to written and oral exchanges.

We work on fixed fees for clearly scoped engagements (incorporation, contract drafting, audits) and on monthly retainers for ongoing advisory. Hourly billing is the exception, not the default. You always know the cost before work starts.

Typical timeline is 2–3 weeks from KYC kick-off to RCS registration, assuming standard documentation. Holding-company structures, foreign-shareholder identification or in-kind contributions can extend this — we flag the gating items at the first meeting.

Absolutely. We routinely coordinate with your in-house counsel, expert-comptable or notaire — pragmatic collaboration is the norm, not the exception. We send them everything they need to do their part without duplicating work.

Mariela Petrova

Mariela Petrova

Avocate au Barreau de Paris

Toque #C2396

15+ Years In Corporate Practice

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Communications protected by professional secrecy — secret professionnel de l'avocat, Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971.

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