The councillor in question may be assisted by one of his peers, by a lawyer admitted to the Conseil d’Etat and the Cour de Cassation or by a lawyer registered with a bar association.
The file on the proceedings is made available to the party concerned and his counsel at least forty-eight hours before each committee meeting or each hearing by the rapporteur or his delegate. At any time during the proceedings, the employee representative in question may submit any documents he or she deems useful and lodge statements in his or her defence.