Subsection 2: Aggressive commercial practices

Articles in this section · 2

Article L121-7

French Consumer CodeIn force

Updated 8 Nov 2023

Sont réputées agressives au sens de l'article L. 121-6 commercial practices aimed at :
1° Giving the consumer the impression that he will not be able to leave the premises before a contract has been concluded;
2° Making personal visits to the consumer's home, ignoring his request to see the trader leave the premises or not to return, unless authorised to do so by national law to ensure performance of a contractual obligation;
3° Making repeated and unwanted solicitations by telephone, fax, e-mail or any other means of distance communication;
4° Compelling a consumer who wishes to claim compensation under an insurance policy to produce documents which cannot reasonably be regarded as relevant to establishing the validity of the claim or systematically refraining from replying to relevant correspondence, with the aim of dissuading that consumer from exercising his contractual rights;
5° In an advertisement, directly inciting children to buy or persuading their parents or other adults to buy the advertised product for them;
6° Explicitly informing the consumer that if he does not buy the product or service, the trader's job or livelihood will be threatened;
7° Giving the impression that the consumer has already won, will win or will win by performing such an act a prize or other equivalent benefit, when in fact :

either there is no prize or other equivalent benefit;
or the performance of an action in connection with the request for the prize or other equivalent benefit is conditional on the consumer having to pay money or bear a cost.

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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