French Legislation In English

Search, Read and Apply French Law. In English.

20+ full codes, 2,400+ articles translated and updated. Case law linked to every article. Read the actual text before you ask a lawyer about it — free, no login required.

Try: L.227-1 SAS governance, L.145-9 bail commercial renewal, L.223-18 gérant removal SARL

20+

french codes

Fully translated

2,400+

articles in English

Updated regularly

480+

court rulings linked

Per article

Free

full access

No login required

Showing 66316640 of 62236 articles for Art. L 1237-1 et seq.

French Commercial codeIn force
Chapter VIII: Transferable securities issued by joint stock companies.

Article L228-18

The dividend distributed, if any, to holders of preference shares may be paid in equity securities, in accordance with the terms set by the Extraordinary General Meeting or the Articles of Association…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Commercial codeIn force
TITLE II: Provisions specific to various commercial companies.

Article L227-16

Under the conditions they determine, the Articles of Association may provide that a shareholder may be required to transfer his shares. They may also provide for the suspension of the non-pecuniary ri…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Commercial codeIn force
Section 5: Securities giving access to the capital or giving entitlement to the allotment of debt securities

Article L228-102

Unless specifically stipulated in the issue contract and excluding the case of early dissolution not resulting from a merger or demerger, the company may not require holders of securities giving acces…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter III: Patent rights

Article L613-14

If the holder of a compulsory licence fails to comply with the conditions under which that licence was granted, the patent owner and, where applicable, the other licensees may obtain from the court th…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter I: Scope of application

Article L611-17

Inventions shall not be patentable if their commercial exploitation would be contrary to human dignity, public policy or accepted principles of morality, and this shall not be inferred from the mere f…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter II: Submission and processing of applications

Article L612-15

The applicant may convert his patent application into a utility certificate application under conditions laid down by regulation.The applicant may convert his utility certificate application into a pa…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter I: Scope of application

Article L611-15

An invention is considered industrially applicable if its subject matter can be made or used in any kind of industry, including agriculture.

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter III: Patent rights

Article L613-19

The State may obtain ex officio, at any time, for the needs of national defence, a licence for the exploitation of an invention, which is the subject of a patent application or patent, whether such ex…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter III: Patent rights

Article L613-13

Mandatory licences and ex-officio licences are non-exclusive. The rights attached to these licences may only be transferred together with the goodwill, business or part of the business to which they a…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
French Intellectual Property CodeIn force
Chapter I: Scope of application

Article L611-12

If a first filing has been made in a State which is not a member of the Paris Union or the World Trade Organization, a right of priority attached to that filing having effects equivalent to those prov…

AI translation · Updated 8 Nov 2023Open Article
Common Questions

French legislation in English — Q&A

Our translations are produced and reviewed for accuracy, but the only legally binding version of French law is the French original. For court, registry or contractual use we offer lawyer-reviewed or sworn certified translations on request.
Articles are synced with Légifrance and updated as soon as a reform is published in the Journal Officiel, so you always read the version in force — and can see when each article was last amended.
Each article is linked to the key court decisions (Cour de cassation, Conseil d'État, courts of appeal) that interpret it, so you can read the text and its case-law application side by side.
Yes — every article has an AI plain-English summary, and you can order a lawyer-reviewed explanation of how it applies to your specific situation, with next steps.
No. Reading and searching the codes is free with no login. Paid services — certified translation and the legal application report — are entirely optional.
Mariela Petrova

Mariela Petrova

Avocate au Barreau de Paris

Toque #C2396

15+ Years In French Corporate Practice

English · French · Russian

Ready When You Are

Talk To A Lawyer
In France.

A 20–30 minute call, in English, to scope the engagement. No obligation, no preliminary fee. You will leave the call with a clear view of what the work will cover and what it will cost.

First EngagementFixed Fee

Talk to a French lawyer.

Reply within 24 hours.

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

Continue

Related legal services

01 / Read

Browse the French codes

20+ full codes and 2,400+ articles in English, with the key court rulings linked to every article — free to read.

Read More
02 / Apply

Legal application report

A lawyer-reviewed report explaining how the relevant articles apply to your situation, with case-law analysis and next steps.

Read More
03 / Act

Talk to a French lawyer

Scope your matter with a Paris-Bar avocate — incorporation, contracts, disputes — handled bilingually, end to end.

Read More