Section 1: Obligations to report to the Deputy European Public Prosecutor

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Article D47-1-37

French Code of Criminal ProcedureIn force

Updated 6 Nov 2023

The alerts provided for in articles D. 47-1-35 and D. 47-1-36 include at least the following elements:

1° A description of the facts, including an assessment of the damage caused or likely to be caused to the European Union and, where appropriate, to other victims;

2° The possible legal qualification(s);

3° Any available information on potential victims, suspects and any other person involved, in particular if one or more officials or other servants of the European Union, or members of the institutions of the European Union, are or are likely to be implicated.

4° If there are one or more related offences under the conditions set out in Article D. 47-1-34, it is specified whether the maximum custodial sentence incurred for this or these offence(s) is equivalent to or greater than the sentence incurred for the offences provided for in articles D. 47-1-31 to D. 47-1-33, and whether or not the related offence contributed to the financial offence.

5° If there are grounds for assuming that the damage caused or likely to be caused to the Union's financial interests by an offence referred to in Articles D. 47-1-31 or D. 47-1-32 does not exceed the harm caused or likely to be caused to another victim.

6° In the cases provided for in 4° and 5°, it shall be specified whether the judicial authority considers that, in accordance with Article 25(3) of Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939 of 12 October 2017, the European Public Prosecutor's Office might not exercise its jurisdiction.

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

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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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