French Sports Code
In forceThe liberty and custody judge of the judicial court within whose jurisdiction the premises to be visited are located or the liberty and custody judge of the judicial court provided for by the decree referred to in I of article 706-2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure may, at the reasoned request of the Secretary General of the French Anti-Doping Agency, authorise by order the Agency's investigators to carry out visits to any premises and to seize documents and records and take explanations from the persons contacted on site.
When the premises visited are located within the jurisdiction of several courts and simultaneous action must be taken in each of them, a single order may be issued by one of the competent liberty and custody judges.
The judge must check that the request for authorisation submitted to him or her is well-founded; this request must include all the information in the Agency's possession likely to justify the visit. He shall designate the judicial police officer responsible for attending these operations and keeping him informed of their progress. Where the operations take place outside the jurisdiction of the court hearing the case, the liberty and custody judge may visit the premises, regardless of their location on national territory.
The order referred to in the first paragraph shall mention that the occupier of the premises or his representative may call upon counsel of his choice. The exercise of this option does not result in the suspension of the search and seizure operations. The time limit and means of appeal shall be stated in the order.
The order shall be notified orally and on the spot at the time of the visit to the occupier of the premises or to his representative, who shall receive a full copy against receipt or in writing in the report provided for in the eleventh and twelfth paragraphs of this article. In the absence of the occupier of the premises or his representative, the order is notified, after the visit, by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt. Notification is deemed to have been made on the date of receipt shown on the notice. If the order is not received, it will be served by a bailiff. A copy of the order shall be sent by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt to the alleged perpetrator of the violations or breaches referred to in article L. 232-18-5.
The order referred to in the first paragraph shall be enforceable on the basis of the original copy alone. This order may be appealed before the First President of the Court of Appeal or his delegate in whose jurisdiction the judge authorised the measure. The parties are not required to constitute a lawyer. In accordance with the rules set out in the Code of Civil Procedure, this appeal must be lodged exclusively by declaration delivered or sent, by registered post or electronically, to the court registry within a period of fifteen days. This period runs from the date of delivery, receipt or service of the order. This appeal does not have suspensive effect. The clerk's office of the judicial court shall without delay transmit the case file to the clerk's office of the court of appeal where the parties may consult it. The order of the First President of the Court of Appeal may be appealed to the Court of Cassation in accordance with the rules set out in the Code of Civil Procedure. The time limit for an appeal to the Supreme Court is fifteen days.
The visit is carried out under the authority and control of the judge who authorised it. The judge may visit the premises during the visit. At any time, the judge may decide to suspend or terminate the visit.
The visit may not begin before 6 p.m. or after 11 p.m.; in places open to the public, it may also begin during the establishment's opening hours. It shall be carried out in the presence of the occupier of the premises or his representative; if this is not possible, the criminal investigation police officer shall call two witnesses chosen from persons other than those under his authority or that of the Agency.
Only investigators from the Agency, the occupier of the premises or his representative and the criminal investigation police officer may inspect the documents before they are seized.
The criminal investigation police officer shall ensure that professional secrecy and the rights of the defence are respected in accordance with the provisions of the third paragraph of article 56 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Article 58 of this Code is applicable.
When the home visit is carried out in a lawyer's office or at his home, on the premises of a press or audiovisual communication company, or in the office of a doctor, notary or bailiff, the provisions of articles 56-1, 56-2 or 56-3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, as applicable, are applicable.
The Agency's investigators will immediately draw up a report on the visit, describing how the operation was carried out. An inventory of the items and documents seized is attached. The report and the inventory are signed by the Agency's investigators and by the judicial police officer, as well as by the occupant of the premises or his representative. If the latter refuse to sign, this is noted in the report. If it is difficult to draw up the inventory on site, the items and documents seized are placed under seal. The occupier of the premises or his representative shall be informed that he may attend the opening of the seals, which shall take place in the presence of the judicial police officer; the inventory shall then be drawn up.
The First President of the Court of Appeal within whose jurisdiction the judge authorised the measure shall hear appeals against the conduct of the search or seizure operations authorised pursuant to the first paragraph. The minutes and the inventory drawn up at the end of these operations shall mention the time limit and the means of appeal. The parties are not required to appoint a lawyer. In accordance with the rules set out in the Code of Civil Procedure, this appeal must be lodged exclusively by declaration delivered or sent by registered post or electronically to the court registry within a period of fifteen days. This period runs from the date of delivery or receipt of either the minutes or the inventory. This appeal does not have suspensive effect. The First President's order may be appealed to the Court of Cassation in accordance with the rules set out in the Code of Civil Procedure. The deadline for lodging an appeal is fifteen days.
As soon as they have been drawn up, the originals of the inspection report and the inventory are sent to the judge who issued the order; a copy of these same documents is given to the occupier of the premises or his representative, or in their absence, sent by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt to the occupier of the premises and, where applicable, to the person covered by the authorisation given in the order referred to in the first paragraph who may have committed one of the violations or breaches mentioned in article L. 232-18-5. If these documents are not received, they shall be served by bailiff. These documents shall mention the time limit and the appeal procedure.
Records and documents that are no longer useful for establishing the truth shall be returned to the occupier of the premises.
