Having read the recent experience of someone seeking justice in a dispute with their builder, my advice is that unless the claim is substantial, probably in excess of €20k, try and resolve it by the services of a local Bailiff. This is not the same as a bailiff in the UK, the term here refers to a qualified lawyer in the field of construction and a visit and report (including a site visit) would roughly cost €500 assuming the claim is under €20k. If that fails to achieve an amicable solution then in the absence of a small claims court here in France, the next step is a step into the unknown!
I have to say that I tried recently to enforce a French entrepreneur to remedy some defective work albeit not likely to have cost him more than €1,000. Despite a damning report from the Bailiff, this failed to produce any action whatsoever, so apparently the next stage was to submit the claim to the High Court in Montauban. Below is the procedure at this stage:
1) Appoint your solicitor. It is best to find one within the local jurisdiction of the dispute (e.g. Montauban) as to do otherwise involves the appointment of two lawyers as it’s mandatory to have a local solicitor to act before the local High Court.
2) Your solicitor first drafts a summons before the “juge des référés” of the local High Court to have a judicial expert appointed.
3) He/she then sends the summons to the Defendant and his insurance company (assuming they are insured and that’s another matter altogether) via a bailiff (about 100€ for each notification).
4) If you are using a solicitor out of the area of jurisdiction as I referred to above (say Toulouse or Bordeaux) they will have to find a local lawyer.
5) When the Court accepts that you need to have an expert look at your damages and write a report, you’ll have to pay for the expert’s provisional fees which for a construction dispute, are usually a minimum of €2,000, without counting additional costs that the expert can ask for during the expertise.
6) Each party will then be summoned by the Court for the report.
(By now you’ll be wishing you never started the whole procedure!)
7) The expert will then draft a preliminary report for which the Defendant will have a certain time to respond to.
8) When this time has expired, the expert sends his final report to the Court and to each party.
9) Your solicitor will then have to draft another summons based on the expert’s report, send it to the Defendant and his insurers via a bailiff (same fees).
10) When the bailiff has given the summons to each party, they send your solicitor a copy with their stamp on it and the solicitor can send the summons to the Court for registration.
11) Then you wait for the Defendant and their insurances’ lawyer to respond to the summons to which your solicitor then responds, and so on until the Court decides that they know enough or until lawyers feel that they don’t have anything else to say.
From my experience in the UK, this was the sort of procedure involved in when dealing with major claims of tens of thousands of pounds either in arbitration or litigation and therefore wholly unsuitable for small claims. We decided not to pursue it any further and put it down to experience, principles cost money and here in France emotional as well as financial!
However, even if you win, don’t break out the champagne just yet as you have to enforce the judgement and that’s another matter altogether!
T of St Antonin
comments to taglines82@gmail.com
Malc adds: in the case cited above by Val the court ordered us to pay the joiner what he claimed and said he would rectify the defective work. We are still waiting but won't be taking it further.
However, even if you win, don’t break out the champagne just yet as you have to enforce the judgement and that’s another matter altogether!
T of St Antonin
comments to taglines82@gmail.com
Malc adds: in the case cited above by Val the court ordered us to pay the joiner what he claimed and said he would rectify the defective work. We are still waiting but won't be taking it further.
