Subsection 1: Operators of voluntary sales of furniture by public auction

The Sales House Council will draw up the list of candidates admitted to sit the traineeship entrance examination tests three weeks before the date of the first test of each session. Individual invitations mentioning the day, time and place of the tests are sent to each candidate at least fifteen days in advance.

The examination shall comprise written eligibility tests and oral admission tests based on the syllabus set out in Appendix 3-4 to this book. The Conseil des maisons de vente provides the secretariat for the jury.

The written eligibility tests comprise: 1° A theoretical test lasting four hours on legal subjects, related to the activities of public sales of furniture, the mark for which is assigned a coefficient of 3; 2° A theoretical test lasting four hours on knowledge of the arts and techniques, the mark for which is assigned a coefficient of 3.

Candidates may use codes or compendia of laws and decrees containing no indication of doctrine or case law, with no notes other than references to legislative or regulatory texts.

The marking of the eligibility tests is organised in such a way as to preserve the anonymity of each candidate. Each composition is examined by two markers and given a mark from 0 to 20. This mark is assigned the coefficient provided for the corresponding test. Admissibility is declared by the jury if the average of the marks obtained by the candidate is equal to or higher than 10 out…

No one may sit the admission tests unless they have been declared eligible by the selection board. The admission tests are oral and take place in public session. They comprise: 1° A ten-minute presentation, after thirty minutes’ preparation, on a question drawn by lot by the candidate on the history of art, followed by a twenty-minute discussion with the jury designed to assess the candidate’s general knowledge; the mark is…

The tests are marked from 0 to 20. Each mark is assigned the coefficient laid down for the corresponding test. Marks of less than 7/20, with the exception of that obtained in the optional language test, are eliminatory.

Admission is decided by the selection board if the average of the marks obtained by the candidate in all the eligibility and admission tests is equal to or higher than 10 out of 20. The mark obtained in the optional language test is taken into account, for the calculation of the average, only if it is higher than 10 out of 20.

The jury draws up the list of candidates declared admitted. This list is displayed on the premises of the Conseil des Maisons de Vente, the Chambre Nationale des Commissaires-priseurs Judiciaires and the Conseil National des Courtiers de marchandises assermentés. It is also published on the websites of these bodies. The conseil des maisons de vente issues the certificate of successful completion of the traineeship entrance examination.