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French law displays many features that set it apart in a world class of its own. It can be said to proceed from a number of independent streams that coexist despite apparent contradiction. More than half of the 2283 articles of the famous Code Civil of 1804 remain unaltered; yet French administrative judges jealously guard their prerogative to create their own public law. And yet again, since the 1974 law empowering the legislature to convene the Constitutional Council that judges the constitutionality of laws under the 1958 Constitution, the courts' distinction between 'rules' and 'fundamental principles' has grown steadily – a process that has been greatly accelerated since the 2003 law authorizing the government to "simplify the law." Introduction to French Law is a very practical book that makes clear sense out of the complex results of the various streams of influence observable in the various fields of legal practice in France today. Seventeen chapters, each written by a distinguished French legal scholar, cover the following fields in substantive and procedural detail, with lucid explanations of all their key elements: Constitutional Law European Union Law Administrative Law Criminal Law Criminal Procedure Property Law Intellectual Property Law Contract Law Tort Liability Family Law Inheritance Law Civil Procedure Company Law Competition Law Labour Law Tax Law Private International Law A book that is both a useful guide for practitioners and a comprehensive survey of French law (with no sacrifice of rationale or theory), Introduction to French Law has no peers. It is sure to spend more time in briefcases or on desks than on the shelf. ; https://scholarship.law.columbia.edu/books/1184/thumbnail.jpg

Abstract: Contractual penalties are a quite classical topic of doctrinal debate in France. The said debate focuses mainly on two issues: contractual freedom on one side and restrictions to it on the other side. In addition to that, the unclear distinction between contractual penalties and liquidated damages clauses in French law raises further questions. In legal practice, the use of contractual penalties is widespread because it reduces the uncertainty surrounding the judicial assessment of damages. Contractual penalties do not, however, exclude completely the judge's intervention. Indeed, a classification as contractual penalty will submit the contractual clause to the judge's moderation power. Drafters of contractual clauses make, therefore, sure not to rely on a wording that could refer to the penalty dimension of a contractual term in order to exclude judicial intervention. This judicial intervention could, however, rely on the unfairness of the clause, whatever the appellation given to it. Although limited to business-to-consumers (B2C) contracts at the moment, the 'contractual term unfairness' approach could be extended to business-to-business (B2B) contracts as well in the future, which would therefore limit to a large extent the debate surrounding the issue of classification as penalties of contractual clauses. Résumé: Le sujet des clauses pénales est assez classique dans le débat doctrinal français. Deux enjeux déterminent plus précisément ce débat : la liberté contractuelle d'un côté et la limitation de cette liberté par le juge de l'autre. A cela s'ajoute le caractère imprécis de la distinction entre la notion de clause pénale et celle d'évaluation forfaitaire du préjudice, créant d'ultérieures interrogations. Dans la pratique, l'usage de ces clauses est particulièrement répandu car il réduit l'incertitude de l'évaluation judiciaire du préjudice. Il n'exclut toutefois pas toute intervention du juge en fonction de la qualification retenue du fait du pouvoir modérateur de la clause pénale qui est accordé au juge par le Code civil. Les rédacteurs de clauses veillent donc à exclure la référence au caractère punitif de la clause afin d'éviter cette intervention du juge. Mais ce dernier peut néanmoins trouver une autre voie d'entrée dans le monde contractuel, notamment en appréciant le caractère abusif de la clause. Cette faculté, qui est pour l'instant limitée aux contrats entre consommateurs et professionnels, pourrait être étendue à tous les contrats. Le débat autour du pouvoir modérateur du juge face aux clauses pénales perdrait ainsi une grande partie de son intérêt.

The law-making process -- Legislation and the constitutional framework -- Codification -- Statutory interpretation -- Case law -- Law reform -- The method of deciding cases -- Judges -- Judicial reasoning -- Judicial style -- Case notes -- Legal education -- Selected fields of French law -- Administrative law -- Procedure -- The law of contract -- The law of tort -- Property law

This paper outlines a methodology for handling a research issue in French law and identifies the various sources of that law. Our point of departure is that we are entering a civil law system. Therefore, this paper first briefly addresses the general features of the French law system. It then reviews the printed research tools and finally lists the main legal databases and Internet sites.