Section 4: Debates

The president or one of the assessors designated by him, after having, if necessary, informed the accused of his right to be assisted by an interpreter, establishes his identity and gives notice of the document that has referred the case to the court. He informs the accused of his right, during the hearing, to make statements, answer questions or remain silent. He also establishes the presence or absence of the…

In the event that the accused, the civil party or the witness does not sufficiently speak the French language, or if it is necessary to translate a document submitted to the debates, the president shall appoint an interpreter ex officio, who must be at least twenty-one years of age, and shall make him/her take an oath to assist justice in his/her honour and conscience. The public prosecutor, the accused and…

If the defendant is deaf, the presiding judge will automatically appoint a sign language interpreter or any qualified person who has mastered a language or method of communicating with the deaf to assist him or her during the trial. The latter shall take an oath to assist the justice system in honour and conscience. The president may also decide to use any technical device enabling communication with the deaf person….

On the day specified for the appearance at the hearing, the accused in custody shall be taken there by the police.

The accused duly summoned in person must appear, unless he provides an excuse recognised as valid by the court before which he is summoned. The accused has the same obligation when it is established that, although he has not been summoned in person, he was aware of the regular summons concerning him in the cases provided for by articles 557,558 and 560. If these conditions are met, the accused person…

When the accused summoned under the conditions provided for in the first paragraph of Article 410 does not appear and the sentence he or she is facing is equal to or greater than two years’ imprisonment, the court may order the case to be remanded and, by special reasoned decision, issue a warrant to bring in or an arrest warrant. If the accused is arrested as a result of the…

Whatever the penalty incurred, the accused may, by letter addressed to the president of the court and which will be attached to the record of the proceedings, request to be tried in his absence by being represented during the hearing by his lawyer or by a court-appointed lawyer. These provisions apply regardless of the conditions under which the accused was summoned. The accused’s lawyer, who may intervene during the debates,…

If the summons has not been delivered to the person of the accused, and if it has not been established that he was aware of the summons, the decision, in the event of the accused’s failure to appear, shall be rendered by default, unless the provisions of Article 411. In all cases, if a lawyer is present to defend the accused, he must be heard if he so requests. The…

No one is entitled to declare that he is in default if he is present at the start of the hearing.

The provisions of article 411, paragraphs 1 and 2, are applicable whenever the debate on the merits of the case is not to be addressed, and especially when the debate is to concern only civil interests.