Chapter II: Responsibilities.

Articles in this section · 14

Article L462-4-1

French Commercial codeIn force

Updated 7 Nov 2023

The Competition Authority issues an opinion to the Minister of Justice, who is its guarantor, on the freedom of establishment of notaries and judicial commissioners.

It makes recommendations to improve access to public or ministerial offices with a view to strengthening the territorial cohesion of services and gradually increasing the number of offices in France. It also draws up a report on access by women and men to public or ministerial offices, based on data presented by gender and an analysis of demographic trends for women and young people in the professions concerned. These recommendations are published at least every two years. They are accompanied by the card mentioned in I de l'article 52 de la loi n° 2015-990 du 6 août 2015 pour la croissance, l'activité et l'égalité des chances économiques.

The opening of a procedure to draw up the map mentioned in the second paragraph of this article shall be made public, within five days of the date of such opening, in order to allow consumer defence associations approved at national level to take legal action, the professional bodies of the professions concerned, and any person meeting the conditions of nationality, aptitude, good repute, experience and insurance required to be appointed by the Minister of Justice as a notary or commissaire de justice to send the Autorité de la concurrence their observations.

When the Autorité de la concurrence deliberates pursuant to this article, its college shall include two qualified persons appointed by decree for a non-renewable term of three years.

Mariela Petrova

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Common Questions

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

English · French · Russian

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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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