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Article liminaire

French Consumer CodeIn force

Updated 8 Nov 2023

For the purposes of this code, the following definitions shall apply:


1° Consumer: any natural person who is acting for purposes that do not fall within the scope of his commercial, industrial, craft, liberal or agricultural activity;


2° Non-professional: any legal person who is not acting for professional purposes;


>Professional: any natural person who is not acting for professional purposes;


Professional: any natural person who is acting for professional purposes 3° Professional: any natural or legal person, public or private, who is acting for purposes relating to his commercial, industrial, craft, liberal or agricultural activity, including when he is acting in the name of or on behalf of another professional;



4° Producer: the manufacturer of a good, the importer of a good into the European Union or any other person who presents himself as a producer by affixing his name, trademark or other distinctive sign to the good;


5° Goods with digital elements: any tangible personal property which incorporates digital content or a digital service or which is interconnected with such content or service in such a way that the absence of such digital content or digital service would prevent the goods from fulfilling their functions;


6° digital content: data produced and supplied in digital form;


7. digital service: a service enabling the consumer to create, process, store or access data in digital form, or a service enabling sharing or other interaction with data in digital form that is uploaded or created by the consumer or other users of that service;



8. durable medium: any instrument which enables the consumer or trader to store information addressed personally to him so that he can refer to it at a later date for a period of time appropriate to the purposes for which the information is intended and which allows identical reproduction of the information stored;


9° Functionality: the ability of a good, digital content or digital service to fulfil its functions with regard to its purpose;


Compatibility: the ability of a good, digital content or digital service to fulfil its functions with regard to its purpose. 10° Compatibility: the ability of a good, digital content or digital service to function with hardware or software with which digital goods, digital content or digital services of the same type are normally used, without the need to convert the said goods, hardware, software, digital content or digital services;


11° Interoperability: the ability of a good, digital content or digital service to perform its functions in view of its purpose 11° Interoperability: the ability of a good, digital content or digital service to function with hardware or software other than that with which goods, digital content or digital services of the same type are normally used;


>12° Durability: the ability of a good, digital content or digital service to function with hardware or software other than that with which goods, digital content or digital services of the same type are normally used;


13 12° Durability: the ability of a good to maintain the functions and performance required under normal use;


>Personal data: data relating to an individual or a group of individuals. 13° Personal data: personal data as defined in Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of 27 April 2016 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data;

14° Online marketplace: a service using software, including a website, part of a website or an application, operated by or on behalf of a trader, which enables consumers to conclude contracts at a distance with other traders or consumers;


15° Online marketplace operator: any professional who provides an online marketplace for consumers, within the meaning of 2° of I of Article L. 111-7;


16° Commercial practice: any commercial action, omission, conduct, approach or communication, including advertising and marketing, on the part of a trader, directly related to the promotion, sale or supply of a good, service, or concerning rights and obligations.

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

English · French · Russian

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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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