Section 4: Joint Conciliation Committee

The chairman of the joint conciliation commission provided for in Article L. 615-21 is appointed for a renewable period of three years, by order of the Minister of Justice and the Minister responsible for industrial property. An honorary magistrate may be appointed. One or more alternates may be appointed under the same conditions. They replace the chairman in the event of absence or impediment.

The chairman is assisted by two assessors, whom he appoints for each case from a list of persons competent in the matters dealt with by the commission. The list is drawn up and periodically updated by the director general of the Institut national de la propriété industrielle, on the proposal of representative professional and trade union organisations at national level. One of the assessors is chosen from among the persons…

The commission’s secretariat is provided by the Institut national de la propriété industrielle.

The commission meets at the Institut national de la propriété industrielle or, by decision of the chairman, at one of its provincial centres when circumstances so require.

The members of the commission shall be allocated a fixed allowance for the cases they have to deal with. The allowance shall include the reimbursement of miscellaneous secretarial expenses, correspondence or travel outside their residence, required for the performance of their duties. The rate and conditions of allocation of the fixed allowance shall be set by joint order of the ministers responsible for finance and industrial property.

Expenses incurred by members of the Commission in travelling away from their place of residence in the course of their duties shall be reimbursed in accordance with the conditions applicable to officials in Group I. .

The matter is referred to the commission by a request lodged with the secretariat either by the applicant or by a proxy with proof of authority. The request may also be sent by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt.

The application shall be signed by the applicant or his representative. It shall state: 1° The surname, first names, profession and address of the applicant and of the other parties; 2° The subject of the dispute; 3° The applicant’s pleas in law and submissions; 4° Any information in his possession that may be useful in resolving the dispute. Attached thereto is a copy of the statement and communications made pursuant…

If the application does not comply with the provisions of the preceding article, the secretariat shall invite the applicant to complete it within a period of one month. The option shall be open, before the expiry of this period, to submit the compliance of the application to the assessment of the Chairman. The Chairman, if he confirms the secretariat’s invitation, will set a new deadline for the interested party to…

The other party shall be notified of the referral to the commission by the secretariat. At the same time, it shall be invited to submit, within the time limit set by the chairman, its written observations on the merits of the request. The Minister of Defence shall be entitled to take cognisance, at the commission secretariat, of all disputes submitted to the commission.