Conduct of a civil trial before the court

Verified 21 October 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Wondering how to present your defense in a civil trial before the court? The rules differ according to the type of procedure initiated: written procedure or oral procedure. We present you with the information you need to know.

Before the court of justice, the parts at trial must be represented by a lawyer except in certain cases.

In the written procedure, the lawyer is mandatory, whereas in the oral procedure, it is optional.

Written procedure

That you are applicant or defendant, you must be assisted by a lawyer from the beginning to the end of the procedure.

If you want to enter the court of law, you're the plaintiff. To go to court, you must first call on a lawyer to write your subpoena legal proceedings. The assignment is then issued to your opponent by a Commissioner of Justice (formerly bailiff).

If you are the addressee of a summons, you are the defendant in the proceedings. You must take a lawyer within 15 days if you want to be represented in the procedure.

FYI  

There may be several plaintiffs and several defendants in a proceeding.

Communication of the conclusions

You and your opponent must prepare your case for trial. During the preparation of the file, it is only your lawyer who must ensure communication with the court and your opponent.

The preparation period for the application is called the reconditioning.

During this period, lawyers must present their requests and their arguments (called means) in a named entry conclusions. The conclusions must be accompanied by supporting documents.

The first conclusions of the plaintiff are the summons to court. After that, the conclusions are prepared in turn by you and your opponent.

At the beginning of the pre-trial stage, it is up to the defendant to respond to the subpoena by preparing its initial findings.

You and your opponent must exchange all your documents and send them to the court: that is the principle of contradictory. All the documents and findings shall be communicated electronically, by the lawyers, at graft of the court.

Role of the pretrial judge

A judge, called pretrial judge, shall have the task of ensuring that the procedure is carried out properly. Checks the folder during status hearings.

Status hearings are held regularly until the case is ready for trial. They are taking place virtually : you don't have to go to court.

At status hearings, the judge shall check that the exchange of pleadings and exhibits between you and your opponent within the time limits set by the Council. It may, for example, require a party to provide its findings within a set time limit, close the case without a party's findings or cancel the case if its requests are not complied with.

Please note

You have the opportunity to make certain requests to the pretrial judge. For example, you can ask for an expert opinion, or you can ask the judge to order the other party to provide documents.

The duration of the pretrial depends on the number of conclusions you exchange with your opponent, the timing set by the pretrial judge, the nature and difficulty of your case.

FYI  

You can decide to rehabilitate your file without the intervention of a rehabilitative judge. To do this, you and your opponent must sign a participatory procedure. This agreement includes reciprocal commitments and guarantees and is intended to put the case in a state where it can be argued.

Once the file is complete, the pretrial judge close trade and set the date of the hearing of your business.

The hearing at which your case is heard is called hearing.

You cannot provide new findings or journals after the status close date.

If you agree with your opponent, you can ask the judge that the proceedings proceed without a hearing.

Settlement

At any point in the procedure, you can attempt a mediation or a reconciliation. If you are a requester, you can also withdraw, that is to say, to ask for an end to the trial.

For procedures introduced from 1er november 2023, you may attempt to settle the dispute amicably.

The judge decides, at your request or of his own motion, after having received your opinion, to have you summoned to a ARAARA : settlement hearing.

A judge, other than the judge hearing the dispute, shall act as conciliator in those proceedings.

You must appear in person and be assisted by a lawyer.

Unless otherwise agreed by you, all that is said, written or done during the hearing is confidential.

You can ask the judge of theARAARA : settlement hearing to record your agreement (partial or total). The minutes of agreement shall be forwarded to the judge hearing the dispute at the end of theARAARA : settlement hearing.

On the day of the hearing, you must be represented by your lawyer. This is also the case for your opponent.

The procedure being in writing, your lawyer can plead or simply file your case without pleading.

You have the right to attend the hearing, but your presence is not mandatory.

At the end of the hearing, the judge gives the date of deliberation, i.e. date on which the judgment is given.

If the judge decides to issue the judgment on a date other than the date originally announced, he or she must send a notice to your lawyer indicating the new date and the reasons for the postponement.

Pending the deliberation, you can't file any more notes to support your comments. You can only file a new note if the judge has invited you to do so to clarify a point in the case or if the proceedings are reopened.

The court shall give its decision in the form of a judgment.

On the day of deliberation, the judgment shall be made available at the Registry, i.e. the parties can consult it in court with an identity document. Less commonly, the judgment is delivered orally at the hearing on the day of deliberation.

The judgment must meet all the demands: yours and those of your opponent.

The device of the judgment shall indicate, for each application, whether it is granted or not. The game motives of the court decision sets out the reasoning of the court.

FYI  

Sometimes the court cannot rule on the dispute. This is, for example, the case if the plaintiff brought the wrong case before the wrong court. In that case, the court shall make a decision of lack of competence. This is still the case if the court issues a stay of proceedings. It's a judge's order that causes a pause in the trial until a certain date or the arrival of an event.

The judgment is enforceable by provision (i.e. it applies even if a party exercises a remedy), unless otherwise specified in the decision.

You can challenge the judgment in appealing within the period specified in the significance.

If you notice a hardware error in your court decision, you can file a request for rectification.

If the judge has failed to rule on an application by one of the parties to the dispute, you can also refer the matter to the judge for a decision on the application.

FYI  

If a point of judgment is equivocalIn other words, it can be interpreted in several ways, you can ask the judge to interpret its own decision by filing a request. You can only make this request if the decision is not appealed in call. The judge shall make his decision after having sought the opinion of the parties.

Oral proceedings

You can to act alone before the court or be assisted by a lawyer.

If you want to enter the court of law or the community court, you are the applicant.

Depending on the dispute, you must either have a subpoena, or fill in a request.

Warning  

You must apply to the court in accordance with the rules of procedure. For example, if you send a request when a summons is required, your case cannot be tried.

If you receive a summons from the graft by registered letter or if you are the addressee of an assignment, you are the defendant to the procedure.

Since the proceedings are oral, the trial is structured around an audience.

If the court is seized by motion, you are summoned for this hearing, just like your opponent. Otherwise, the date of the hearing is in the summons.

Submission of documents and applications

In order to respect the adversarial principle, you need to communicate your parts and requests to your opponent. If your opponent takes a lawyer, you should send them to him.

Your opponent must do the same.

Warning  

You do not communicate your coins to your opponent at the last minute. If your exhibits are communicated too late to your opponent, the judge may refuse to take them into account.

The parts you want to use must also be sent to the court before the hearing. You can also file them in court on the day of the hearing.

You can try to agree with your opponent even if the court is seized. One amicable agreement may intervene at any time and thus terminate the procedure.

Assistance or representation

You can present in person at the hearing, where appropriate assisted by a lawyer.

If you're not here, you can get a lawyer to represent you.

Who shall I contact

You can also make yourself represent by a person other than a lawyer.

If you wish to be represented at the hearing by another person, you may give them a power.

Power is one written document which allows the designated person to appear at the hearing and speak for you and on your behalf.

The designated representative must be major. He must attend the hearing with the power and one identity document.

You can use the following template to write your power:

Model of power of representation in legal proceedings

In your power, you must designate one of the following persons:

  • No one with whom you live as a couple
  • Your father or your mother
  • Your child
  • Your brother or sister
  • Your nephew or niece
  • Your aunt or uncle
  • A person who is attached to your personal service or company (for example, a company lawyer or a domestic worker).

If you go to the hearing, these same people are allowed to assist you instead of a lawyer.

Proceedings without hearing

The hearing is not mandatory if you agree to ensure that the proceedings are conducted without a hearing. Your opponent must do the same.

The following form is used to give consent for proceedings without a hearing:

Consent to the conduct of the proceedings without a hearing - Oral proceedings before the court or the protection litigation judge

The judge may, however, decide to hold a hearing if he or she considers it necessary or if one of the parties so requests.

If the proceedings are conducted without a hearing, you must submit your requests and arguments in writing to your opponent and to the court.

Communication between your opponent and you must be by registered letter with a request for notice of receipt unless you have hired a lawyer.

If your case is not referred to a future hearing, it will be dealt with in a adversarial debate.

The court must sometimes rule on its substantive or territorial jurisdiction before dealing with the dispute.

Consequences of absence from the hearing

Your absence from the hearing has different consequences if you are the plaintiff or defendant.

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You're the requester

If you are absent and unrepresented, the judge may order the obsolescence of the case. The consequence of this decision is to terminate the proceedings.

If you are excused from appearing, the case may be rescheduled or tried in your absence.

You're the defendant

The trial can be held if you get hurt to be represented by a lawyer or a third party with.

The trial can also take place if you are absent and unrepresented but provided that your summons is regular. In this case, the judge must be able to verify that you have been informed of the existence of the trial (summoned by LRAR or by the Commissioner of Justice).

The judge can postpone the trial to another date if you file a postponement request that the judge considers legitimate. They may also postpone the hearing if they feel it is necessary for you to be here.

Request for referral

You can request the return. of your case. If the application is granted, the judge shall fix the date of the next hearing at which the case is to be heard.

This request must be justified (too short a time to prepare your defense, application for legal aid pending ...).

The judge can accept your request if he considers that the ground is legitimate (it must be serious and justified). In this case, the judge sets the date for the next hearing. He or she may also refuse your request: in this case, the case is examined the same day.

In the event of a dismissal, particularly if your opponent has requested it, you can ask the judge to be excused from showing up at the next hearing.

Territorial and material jurisdiction of the court

Before discussing the dispute itselfHowever, you may raise the question of the material or territorial jurisdiction of the court which was given jurisdiction in the matter. The judge may also raise this issue.

The court may declare incompetent to try the case in the following cases:

  • Disputes arising under the jurisdiction of another judge (for example, a family court case)
  • Disputes arising under the jurisdiction of another court (e.g. labor council)
  • Disputes arising out of court in another city.

Conduct of the debates

The debate allow you and your opponent, to present your requests and arguments orally concerning the dispute between you.

The presiding judge arranges for the proceedings.

He gave the floor first to the applicant, then in a second stage at defendant.

If you want to explain further after your turn, you can ask the judge to speak again.

The judge may seek clarification from either party.

It can also to hear witnesses.

Exchanges during debates shall be recorded by the Clerk in a hearing note available from the graft.

If the judge considers that the case requires further discussion or the search for additional information (for example, an expert's report or an on-site visit), he or she may postpone the case to another date.

Please note

At any time, if the judge finds that an agreement can be reached, he or she may designate a conciliator of justice or a civil mediator. If this amicable route fails, debate can resume.

Once the parties have spoken, the judge closes the proceedings.

He gives the date of deliberate, i.e. the date on which the judgment will be delivered.

No request or argument may be taken into account after the conclusion of the proceedings, unless the judge expressly authorizes it.

On the day of deliberation, the judgment shall be made available at the RegistryThat is, you can go to the court and see it with your ID.

Less commonly, the judgment can be delivered orally at a hearing.

In any case, a copy of the judgment will be sent to you.

The decision can be made by you notified by the graft by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt.

If not, the decision must be served by a Commissioner of Justice . This service is usually effected by the party who has an interest in enforcing the decision (the party who won the case).

FYI  

The judgment is enforceable by provision (i.e. it applies even if a party exercises a appeal), unless otherwise specified in the decision.

The recourse you can make is indicated in the notification of the Registry or of the Commissioner of Justice.

You can also deduce the possible remedy by looking at the wording of the judgment. In the device of the decision, you can read that your judgment is either rendered first, or last, or rendered in absentia.

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Judgment rendered at first instance

You can challenge in appealing.

Final judgment

You can challenge it by filing a appeal in cassation.

Judgment rendered in default

You can challenge the decision by filing opposition.

The default judgment shall be that given in last resort and for which the quotation was not issued to the defendant in the proceedings.

Warning  

The time limit for contesting starts from significanceof notification by the Registry of the Court of First Instance or of the reading of the decision in open court.

If you notice a hardware error in your court decision, you can file a request for rectification. You can consider the same approach if the judge forgot to rule on a request from one of the parties to the dispute.

FYI  

If a point of judgment is equivocalHowever, if it can be interpreted in different ways, you can ask the judge to interpret its own decision by filing a request. You can only make this request if the decision is not appealed in call. The judge shall make his decision after having sought the opinion of the parties.

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