French Public Health Code
In forceA claim for compensation for damage attributable to a preventive, diagnostic or therapeutic procedure or to a research procedure involving the human person shall be submitted to the Commission within whose jurisdiction the procedure in question was performed. This commission remains competent even if, during the investigation of the claim, acts performed within the jurisdiction of other commissions are also likely to be involved in the damage for which the claimant is seeking compensation. The claim is made on a form that conforms to the model approved by the Office's Board of Directors.
The claim must be sent to the Commission by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt or lodged with the Commission's secretariat in return for a receipt.
It must be accompanied by supporting documents, the list of which, set by order of the Minister for Health, after obtaining the opinion of the Office, is reproduced in the form. In addition to the information mentioned in the second and third paragraphs of article L. 1142-7, this list includes, in particular, a medical certificate attesting to the precise extent of the damage suffered or believed to have been suffered by the claimant. In addition, the claimant must attach any other supporting document, and in particular, unless the act to which the claimant attributes the damage was carried out in the context of research involving the human person, to establish that the damage suffered is of the serious nature referred to in II of article L. 1142-1.
The Commission acknowledges receipt of the file, registers the application and, if necessary, requests any missing documents in the form and under the conditions laid down in article L. 114-5 of the Code des relations entre le public et l'administration (Code on relations between the public and the administration).
As soon as it receives the initial claim, the Commission informs by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt the professional, establishment, centre, healthcare organisation, producer, operator or distributor of healthcare products or the sponsor of research involving the human person whose liability is called into question, where applicable, by the claimant, as well as the social security organisation to which the victim was affiliated at the time of the damage he suffered. The accused party must inform the Commission without delay of the name of the insurer covering its civil liability at the time of the claim for compensation and at the time of the events in question.
