What is objective law?
The set of legal rules organizing social life enforced by public order authority.
What are subjective rights?
Prerogatives recognized by objective law that subjects may exercise in relations.
How do objective law and subjective rights relate?
Objective law authorizes subjective rights, making them complementary concepts.
What is positive law?
The set of rules in force in a State at a given time.
What does the normative stock include?
Legislative articles and texts composing law in force.
How many articles and directives did the normative stock exceed?
Over 35,000 articles and 2,000 directives.
What does a law do in legal vocabulary?
A law provides, states, or prescribes.
What decisions do tribunals, courts, and the Constitutional Council render?
Tribunals render judgments, courts render arrêt decisions, Constitutional Council renders decisions.
What distinguishes moral rules from legal rules?
Moral rules arise from conscience, legal rules are created by societies and backed by sanctions.
What does Article 6 of the Civil Code prohibit in private agreements?
Derogating from laws concerning public order or good morals.
What do rules of propriety regulate?
External social behavior.
Are rules of propriety generally sanctioned by law?
No, they are generally not sanctioned by law.
What is ethics?
The search for appropriate solutions by balancing responsibility, progress, and social acceptability.
How does Continental law differ from Common Law?
Continental law is written and codified; Common Law is jurisprudential and based on precedents.
Which codes influenced Belgium, Quebec, and Austria?
The Napoleonic Code influenced Belgium and Quebec; the German BGB inspired Austria.
When did the German BGB enter into force?
In 1900.
What does natural-law theory say about positive law?
It is constrained by superior principles from nature, reason, or the divine.
What does positivism recognize about positive law?
It recognizes positive law independently of its justice.
What does the natural-law formula “Lex iniusta non est lex” mean?
An unjust law is not truly law.
What grounds law in state positivism?
The State and its hierarchy of norms.
What grounds law in sociological positivism?
Social facts, customs, and collective consciousness.
What is legal axiology?
The study of values that inspire and ground law.
What does Article 1 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights state about human dignity?
Human dignity is inviolable and must be respected and protected.
When did the Constitutional Council hold that safeguarding human dignity is a constitutional principle?
On 27 July 1994.
What is a legal rule in social relations?
A general, abstract, and obligatory rule of conduct sanctioned by public authority.
How does a general rule apply to persons?
It applies impersonally to all persons in a defined situation.
How is an individual administrative measure addressed?
It is addressed nominatively to particular persons.
When does a supplementary law apply?
When parties have not expressed a contrary intention.
What is the condition for an imperative law's application?
It applies without derogation except where the law permits an exception.
How is a legal rule enforced?
Through public authority with individuals using the judicial system.
What does sanction mean in criminal law?
A punishment imposed for an offence.
What does sanction mean in civil law?
Compensation for harm suffered.
What are the three steps in legal reasoning?
Identifying facts, determining the rule, and drawing the conclusion.
What are the three components of a syllogism in legal reasoning?
Major premise, minor premise, and conclusion.
How does a paralogism differ from a syllogism?
It appears rigorous but leads to a false conclusion.
What is legal qualification in law?
Placing facts into a legal category to determine the applicable rule.
How does deduction differ from induction in legal reasoning?
Deduction goes from general to particular, induction from particular to general.
Where is the Journal officiel de la République française available online?
On Légifrance.
Since when has Légifrance provided access to the Journal officiel de la République française?
Since 2016.
Since when is the Journal officiel de la République française online on Légifrance?
Since 2016.
What types of content does the Journal officiel de la République française include?
It includes laws, regulations, legislative and regulatory sections, parliamentary information, and competitive examination information.
What is the main purpose of treatises in legal publications?
To study a legal subject in depth.
What is the pedagogical purpose in legal textbooks?
To teach legal subjects with a focus on learning.
How do précis differ from treatises and textbooks?
They provide a more concise presentation.
What does private law govern?
Relationships between individuals.
What does public law organize and govern?
The State, public authorities, and their relationships with individuals.
What does public law pursue and organize?
The general interest and the exercise of public authority.
What does private law order and protect?
Social life and individual interests.
What are the two orders distinguished by French dual jurisdiction?
The judicial order and the administrative order.
What does a court of appeal review?
Both facts and law.
What does the Court of Cassation review?
Only whether the law was correctly applied, not the facts.
What is cassation for lack of legal basis?
When the court of appeal has not sufficiently characterized the facts related to the legal rule.
In which year was the Civil Code promulgated in France?
1804
What did the Civil Code unify throughout French territory?
Civil law
What are the four historical stages of civil law development?
Antiquity and Roman law, Ancien droit until 1789, intermediate law 1789-1804, Civil Code
Which two legal traditions did French law distinguish before unification?
Written law in the south and customary law in the north
How many general and local customs existed in pre-unification French law?
About 60 general customs and nearly 700 local customs
What does constitutional law organize?
The form of the State, government constitution, and public authorities' operation
When can constitutional review occur?
A priori before law promulgation or a posteriori via priority question of constitutionality
Since when is a posteriori constitutional review available in France?
Since 2010
What does criminal law define and sanction?
Offences.
Why does criminal law belong to both private and public law?
Because it concerns individuals and the State's power to punish.
Which courts handle contraventions, offences, and crimes respectively?
Police court, criminal court, and assize or departmental criminal court.
What change occurred to the departmental criminal court in 2023?
It was generalized to judge crimes punishable by 15 to 20 years imprisonment.
What does labour law govern?
Relationships between private employers and employees.
What does social security law govern?
Relationships between insured persons and social security bodies.
When did the Court of Cassation recognize ecological damage in the Erika case?
On 25 September 2012.
Which court chamber recognized ecological damage in the Erika case?
The criminal chamber of the Court of Cassation.
What documents comprise the block of constitutionality in France?
The 1958 Constitution, 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man, 1946 Constitution’s preamble, and 2004 Environmental Charter.
When did the Constitutional Council recognize the block of constitutionality?
On 16 July 1971 in its Freedom of Association decision.
What conditions must an international treaty meet to apply in France?
It must be ratified, satisfy reciprocity, and be published in the Journal officiel.
When can individuals invoke an international treaty before French courts?
When its provisions are clear, precise, and unconditional.
How do EU regulations differ from directives in their effect on Member States?
Regulations are directly applicable and binding, directives bind only as to objectives and need transposition.
How many Member States does the European Union have?
27 Member States.
How many members does the Council of Europe have since Russia’s departure?
46 members.
What is the legal status of a classic ordinance before and after ratification under Article 38?
It initially has regulatory value and gains legislative value after ratification.
What are the two required stages for a statute to enter into force?
Promulgation or signature followed by publication.
What is promulgation in the context of statutes?
The President attests to a statute's existence and orders its enforcement.
When does a statute normally enter into force?
The day after its publication unless otherwise specified.
What does codification involve regarding legal rules?
Organizing rules technically in a code without changing their substance.
Does codification confer superiority on the rules it organizes?
No, it does not confer superiority on those rules.
To which legal texts does the principle that no one is deemed to ignore the law apply?
All legal texts, including case law.
What exception does Civil Code article 1132 allow regarding mistakes?
A good-faith mistake of law or fact at contracting can be a defect in consent.
What distinguishes express repeal, tacit repeal, and codification at constant law?
Express repeal is stated by a new text; tacit repeal results from incompatibility; codification reproduces earlier rules unchanged.
What causes a conflict of laws in time?
Two successive laws governing the same situation create a conflict of laws in time.
What does Civil Code article 2 say about retroactive effect of laws?
A law applies only to the future and has no retroactive effect.
Can a 2025 law capping interest affect a 2024 loan contract?
No, the 2024 loan remains governed by the law applicable when concluded.
When does a less severe criminal law apply retroactively?
It applies retroactively if no final conviction was rendered before its entry into force.
What is an element of foreignness in law?
A foreign element in a legal situation causing potential conflict between state laws.
What does the territoriality principle apply in French law?
It applies French police, security, and criminal laws to persons on French territory.
What does the personality principle regulate in French law?
It makes laws on status and capacity of French persons follow them abroad.
What did the Cour de cassation decide in the Princesse de Bauffremont case?
Acquiring German nationality to evade French divorce law was fraud making the second marriage unenforceable.
Test your knowledge with 66 questions on Application and Sources of Law.
1. What is objective law?
2. What are subjective rights?
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