Articles for category: Frankreich

Corporate Duty of Vigilance and Environment

On February 23, 2023, French bank BNP Paribas was sued before the civil tribunal in Paris for having allegedly breached its environmental duty of vigilance. In particular, deficiencies in the vigilance plan related to the allocation fundraising activities are criticized. This climate litigation, involving a French bank for the first time, could increase the liability of financial protagonists in the fight against climate change if it succeeded. Nevertheless, one may doubt that the case against BNP Paribas will prove to be successful, as previous ones – which had been introduced under the 2017 law of vigilance (LdV) – are all either pending or unsuccessful.

6. April 2023

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Constitutional? Perhaps. Democratic? Not so much

The adoption of the Law on Retirement without a majority in the National Assembly has caused a huge uproar in France. The use by the executive of an article or two of the Constitution, as well as the combination thereof, is deemed constitutional until a competent organ says otherwise. And the only one who could, the Constitutional Council, will probably not say otherwise. But even if something is constitutional, that does not make it democratic. A look into the justifications given by the head of State and the head of Government stirs reflection on the relationship between the constitutional and democratic character of the proceedings.

27. März 2023

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Big Brother is Watching the Olympic Games – and Everything Else in Public Spaces

The French National Assembly is currently debating the law on the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Despite its name, the law has more to do with security than with sports. In particular, Article 7 of the law creates a legal basis for algorithmic video surveillance, that is, video surveillance that relies on artificial intelligence to treat the images and audio of video surveillance cameras in order to identify human beings, objects, or specific situations. In other words, video surveillance cameras in France’s public spaces would now able to identify you and detect if your behaviour is suspicious.

22. März 2023

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Inter* Personen im menschenrechtlichen Warteraum

Bei Fällen aus dem LGBTIQ*-Themenkreis vor dem Europäischen Gerichtshof für Menschenrechte (EGMR) lässt sich ein gewisses Muster erkennen: In dem jeweils ersten Beschwerdefall (sei es das Adoptionsrecht für homosexuelle Personen, sei es die Frage der Anerkennung der Geschlechtsidentität von trans* Personen), erkennt der EGMR zunächst keine Verletzung eines Konventionsrechts an. Häufig erklärt er aber auch, dass diese Einschätzung sich ändern kann. So könnte es auch bei der Frage des Personenstatus von inter* Personen kommen.

14. März 2023

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Letting Human Rights Wait in Syrian Camps

Recently, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights handed down its decision about the repatriation of Daesh-involved family members of French citizens. The judgment has been widely commented on in the French and international press. The overall impression that emerged was that of a victory for the applicants and a clear denunciation of French policy regarding the general non-repatriation of French children and their mothers encamped in north-eastern Syria. Reality is, however, very different. In fact, the Court’s decision is very measured. In many respects, it does (too) little and comes (too) late.

12. Oktober 2022

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Terra Incognita for the Fifth French Republic

Undoubtedly, 19 June 2022 will make a mark in the history of the Fifth Republic. Not only did it mark the end of the “absolute majority” of the re-elected President’s party in the Chamber of Deputies, but it also brought about an upheaval in the political and institutional habits in force since 1958. One might be inclined to think that this new configuration will be favorable to dialogue and cooperation between the institutions of the Fifth Republic. One might even assume that the National Assembly, now composed of multiple political forces, will once again be a place for debate. June 2022 will certainly have sounded the death knell of French “presidentialism”, but the concomitant advent of such a divided Assembly will perhaps not favor the emergence of a renewed parliamentarism.

14. Juli 2022

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Ein Riss in zementierten Ansichten

Am 18. Mai 2022 hat die Berufungsinstanz Cour d‘appel de Paris ein u.a. wegen Beihilfe an Verbrechen gegen die Menschlichkeit und dem Vorwurf der Terrorismusfinanzierung eingeleitetes Strafverfahren gegen das Zementunternehmen Lafarge SA bestätigt. Der Umgang der französischen Justiz mit dem „Fall Lafarge“ könnte einen Wendepunkt bei der Adressierung von Kriegsökonomie markieren. Das Unternehmen „an sich“, das durch seine Anerkennung im Recht, seine Einbindung in den Markt und seine Eingliederung in gesellschaftliche Wirkungszusammenhänge längst als „corporate citizen“ in der gesellschaftlichen Realität angekommen ist, wird hier in einem starken Sinne zur Verantwortung gezogen.

6. Juni 2022

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The French Constitutional Council’s Problem with Impartiality

If only one example was needed to show the oligarchic nature of the French political system and the limited power of civil society, the game of musical chairs that was played between the Government and the Constitutional Council in the decision “Association La Sphinx” would be perfect. Two ministers directly involved in the drafting of the challenged policy were also judging the constitutionality of the legislative provisions they themselves brought forward. The Constitutional Council’s rules of procedure dismiss impartiality concerns in such cases. This management of conflicts of interests in this court is unacceptable.

3. Juni 2022

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Das andere Erbe

Die Anschläge vom 11. September 2001 lösten eine neue Praxis und ein neues Interesse an Notstandsbefugnissen aus. Zweifellos waren die Vereinigten Staaten Vorreiter bei ihrer verstärkten Ausübung, aber Frankreich ist ein sehr interessantes Beispiel für die vielen Fragen und Herausforderungen, die die Normalisierung des Ausnahmezustands mit sich bringen. Denn Frankreich wird seit mehr als der Hälfte der Zeit, die seit den Anschlägen vom 13. November 2015 verstrichen ist, unter verschiedenen Ausnahmezuständen regiert.

17. Mai 2022