Subsection 1: Board of Directors.

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Article R4642-4

French Labour CodeIn force

Updated 2 Nov 2023

In its deliberations, the Board of Directors sets the Agency's general guidelines. In addition to the powers conferred on it by Title III of Decree no. 2012-1246 of 7 November 2012 on public budgetary and accounting management, it deliberates in particular on:

1° Multiannual strategic objectives, in particular those set out in the Contract of Objectives and Performance between the Agency and the State;

2° The agency's work programme;

3° The general organisation of the agency and its internal rules of procedure;

4° The agency's budget and any amendments to it, the financial account, the allocation of profits, the employment table and loans;

5° The general conditions of employment and recruitment of staff;

6° Acquisitions, disposals, exchanges of real estate and leases concerning the agency;

7° Acceptance or refusal of gifts and bequests;

8° Approval of partnership agreements where the revenue they generate exceeds an amount set by the Board of Directors;

9° Participation in a public interest group or any other body.

In addition, the Board of Directors adopts the charter setting out the relations between the Agency, its regional divisions and the regional joint bodies referred to in Article R. 4642-2.

It authorises the Director General to take legal action.

It gives an opinion on any question submitted to it by the Chairman of the Board of Directors or by the Minister for Employment and, where applicable, by other ministers.

Mariela Petrova

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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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