French Business Law

A corporate governance structure is the mechanism put in place to determine the distribution of management and control powers and duties within a company. While the day-to-day management of a company always vests with its directors (President, CEO, director general), the exercise of their powers and duties should be subject to control. Such control may be exercised by a supervisory board, whose members are generally appointed by the shareholders, or…

 A call option agreement, or simply labelled a call, is a contract entered into by a potential purchaser of company shares or securities (the “Purchaser”) with the holder of such securities (the “Seller”), whereby the Seller undertakes to sell to the Purchaser all or part of its securities if the Purchaser so requires. Whereas the Purchaser does not have an obligation to purchase, the Seller has an obligation to sell…

A put option agreement, or simply called a put, is a contract entered into by a potential seller of company shares or securities (the “Seller”) with the potential purchaser of such securities (the “Purchaser”), whereby the Purchaser undertakes to purchase from the Seller its securities if the Seller so requires. Whereas the Seller does not have an obligation to sell, the Purchaser has an obligation to purchase if the Seller…

Pursuant to article L. 441-6 of the French Code de commerce (Commercial code): Unless otherwise specified in the general terms and conditions between a buyer and a supplier of products or provider of services, or otherwise agreed between the parties, payment is due 30 days after the date on which the products were received or the services provided. Shorter payment periods apply for certain activities or products. The parties may not agree…

According to article L. 441-6 of the French Code de commerce (Commercial code), penalties for late payment apply as of right, as from the date on which the payment was due. The parties may not agree on late payment penalties in an amount less than three times the legal interest rate. If no penalties were agreed, the penalties are calculated on the basis of the interest rate applied by the…

Make an analysis of your contract to determine the exact amount that you may claim In addition to the unpaid amount for the services that you have provided or the products which you have delivered, you will also be entitled to claim penalties for late payment. To determine the amount of such penalties, you should verify the provisions of your contract. In the event that the agreement contains no penalty…

French corporate law is a complex area of the law which requires specific knowledge about corporate formalities. Our French business lawyers are not only familiar with the legal requirements and formalities applicable to the operation of a company, but also with general market practices regarding company transactions (EBITDA multiples, standard amounts of vendor loans, amount of ROI in venture capital transactions). Corporate law transactions, such as spin-offs, asset contributions, mergers…