The landscape
Class actions ("actions de groupe") were introduced in France in 2014 by the Consumer Act 2014-344.
Initially dedicated to consumer disputes, they later extended to health, environment, personal data protection, workplace discrimination and rental property matters. However, by 2023, only 35 class actions had been brought due to the procedure's length, complexity and cost. No company has yet been found liable in France as a result of a class action.
Difficulties in bringing class actions in France include strict requirements that an association of plaintiffs be accredited and sometimes established for a certain period. Furthermore, French law favours the opt-in system, which means that victims must expressly manifest their intention to join the class action. French law does not recognise punitive damages and allows only for compensatory damages that strictly cover the harm suffered by the victim. Finally, there is no discovery procedure in France, which makes it hard for plaintiffs to discharge the burden of proof.
Since 2022, a bill has been debated before the French parliament to simplify and strengthen France's class actions regime. Under the proposed reforms, the ability to pursue class actions in France will be extended to almost all areas, including new areas such as operation of public services, climate, transport, energy supply and defence of local authorities.
Martin Le Touzé
Disputes Partner, Paris
In the health sector, class actions are limited due to the difficulty in demonstrating similar or identical bodily harm. Causation can be difficult to prove if the patient had a pre-existing condition.
Legal complexity and lack of precedents make it difficult for French companies to manage class action risk. Nonetheless, they will soon need to pay significantly more attention to this area. This is likely to occur as France transposes the EU Directive on class actions into stronger domestic laws.
Current developments
Since 2022, a bill has been debated before the French parliament to simplify and strengthen France's class actions regime.
This bill is intended to make it easier to sue, extending the scope of the law to more plaintiffs, sectors and types of damages. It would also better compensate victims and reduce decision times.
Specialised courts would be appointed to deal with group actions. Concentrating litigation in a limited number of courts would encourage the development of expertise and faster judicial handling of these cases. To remove the financial obstacles to group actions (which can amount to tens of thousands of euros), the cost of the procedure would be reduced by allowing the judge to charge the state for some or all of the costs incurred by the plaintiff associations.
While regulatory bodies in France do not play an important role with respect to class actions, the proposed reform gives power to the public prosecutor to initiate or intervene in a case.
Future trends
Under the proposed reforms, the ability to pursue class actions in France will be extended to almost all areas, including the operation of public services, climate, transport, energy supply and defence of local authorities.
There will be a general right to put an end to the breach or repair the damage. All types of injury (bodily, material and non-material) will now be compensable.
So far, no class action has yet been brought concerning cyber security in France and only two for breaches of personal data. However, managing cyber risk will be an area of increasing concern in coming years. Companies appear to be focused on prevention, training and raising awareness among their employees about cyber security.
Solutions include prioritising the use of virtual private networks, proxies, URL filtering and email gateways. The establishment of an action plan to develop cyber risk insurance and address the growing challenges that could threaten the economic health of businesses.
Companies appear to be focused on prevention, training and raising awareness among their employees about cyber security.
Top 5 areas for class actions in France
- Consumer
- Financial risks
- Market risks
- Cyber
- Environment
Next steps for business
Reputational concerns are incentivising French companies to take more proactive measures to reduce class action risk.
Examples include auditing contracts, addressing customer complaints, improving after-sales services, making commercial gestures and adopting a dispute resolution policy oriented towards amicable agreements. Settlement with victims is preferable to the reputational risk of a public court ruling.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
