Recover Unpaid Invoices in France Legally, Quickly, and Without Conflict

Precautionary seizure

France has the fifth largest economy in the world. Its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2005 was a whopping 1,737 billion euros. Within Europe, France is the third largest economy, after Germany and the United Kingdom. Many Dutch companies do business with French companies. Debt collection France is therefore invariably a runner among our legal products.

Arbitration

Our debt collection specialists are there for you and will ensure that your claim is handled with care. Read in this article how we win for you what you are entitled to.

What can you do in case a debtor is declared bankrupt?

In France, as in the Netherlands, there are various legal forms. We fine-tune our collection strategy to the debtor’s legal form. This is because the legal form of your debtor has an influence on his liability. Some examples of French legal forms are: the EURL (Entreprise Unipersonnelle à Responsabillité), the SASU (Société par Actions Simplifées Unipersonnelle) and the SARL (Société à Limitée). The latter legal form is comparable to a Dutch B.V. The Dutch N.V. is comparable to the French SA (Société Anonyme). We advise you.

Directors’ Liability

France offers several options. We explain.

The proceedings on the merits are often used in France in the case of disputed or high claims. That is, if your debtor does not agree with your claim. This procedure is started with a writ of summons (assignation) to the competent court and is similar to the writ of summons procedure in the Netherlands.

After the summons has been submitted to the competent court, the case will be assigned to a particular chamber of the court. After this, a date and time will be set for a hearing (l’audience d’appel). On the basis of this hearing, it is determined whether a short track (circuit court), ordinary track (circuit moyen) or long track (circuit long) is to be followed.

The route to be followed depends on the circumstances of the case.  We can provide you with extensive information. You will then know exactly where you stand in this difficult matter.

But in many cases we advise you to take another route, the payment order (injonction de payer). The injontion de payer is similar to the European order for payment and is characterized as a “fast procedure”. This procedure only applies to uncontested commercial claims. This procedure is started at court by the submission of an official document by one of our debt collection lawyers France.

In addition to the proceedings on the merits and the French order for payment, debt collection France has a number of other procedures, such as summary proceedings. Our lawyers and jurists are specialized in French debt collection law and can apply the correct procedure to your case.

French debtor often late

In France, strict deadlines apply within which the debtor must respond. If a debtor files an objection too late or does not file an objection at all (which often happens), the judge will immediately rule in absentia, in which case it is a procéduré au fond (proceedings on the merits). The practice of debt collection in France shows that many French debtors do not submit a defence. And that is good for your win(st) chances.

The role of the bailiff (huissier de justice)

Once we have obtained a judgment (jugement) for you, this judgment is enforced by one of our bailiffs. The bailiff ensures that your claim is collected. Unlike the Dutch bailiff, the French bailiff has the advantage that he may request bank details from the debtor in official databases. This ensures that the judgment can be enforced quickly and efficiently.