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GAZETTE
APRIL 1985
to claim. It is essential that a proper record of the medical
case is kept and medical certificates given at intervals by
the usual doctor for future reference. However, a report
by an English general practitioner is not directly
understandable by French courts or insurance
companies. When there is not other way, they will submit
foreign reports to their own experts to get a translation
into their usual terms of reference.
At some stage, therefore, the victim must be examined
by a doctor who knows how the French system works
which may be either:
(a) the insurer's expert;
(b) the court expert;
(c) the victim's expert.
It is a good idea for the victim to be examined soon after
the accident by a private French expert who will make a
preliminary report. This will help in obtaining useful
evidence for later use, and give a forecast of the case from
a forensic angle.
As a practical rule, the victim's expert's opinion will be
accepted when the victim of a minor injury lives outside
France, if only to save on travelling costs. But this expert
must use the right technique to satisfy the other side.
It is also very useful to get expert advice on the medical
assessment of damages, your medical expert being in a
position to discuss the matter with the insurer's expert.
Insurers' experts always attend court experts' medical
investigations. It is therefore important that there is a
counterpart on the victim's side.
At this level, a discussion will often start between the
avocat
and insurance company and settlement frequently
follows. However, if no solution can be found, the case
will have to go to court.
French Courts
Penal Courts
In a nutshell:
(a) car accidents are dealt with locally;
(b) if the driver who caused the accident committed a
penal offence he/she can be sued in penal courts:
(1) when the victim is unable to work for more than
three months the case goes to the
Tribunal
Correctionnel
(three judges sitting), which can
pass sentences of up to two years'
imprisonment in driving cases;
(2) under the three-month period the case goes to
the
Tribunal de Police
(one judge sitting), the
max imum penalty being two mon t h s'
imprisonment.
Penal procedure is totally different from the English
one, since:
(a) the victim is allowed to be a party in the penal case
(called
partie civile),
not on the penalty but on the
guilt element;
(b) if the accused is declared guilty, the criminal court
assesses damages in favour of the victim (and in
favour of the
Sécurité Sociale
for medical expenses
and other benefits);
(c) the victim can also sue the accused's insurers in the
criminal court; and
(d) furthermore, if the judge finds that there was no
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criminal offence, he can still pass judgment for
damages against the acquitted party on the sole civil
grounds of art 1384, Civil Code (no fault liability).
Civil Courts
The claim can be brought in civil courts. Whether there
is an offence or not, the
Tribunal de Grande Instance
one or
three judges sitting) deals with petitions over FFr 20,000,
or where the amount of the damage is not liquidated in the
petition, as in most physical injuries cases.
Smaller accidents (petition under FFr 20,000) are heard
in the
Tribunal d'Instance
(one judge).
Provisional Claim
The President of the Tribunal may grant provisional
orders (
ordonnance de référé)
to appoint experts and as to
provisional payments to the victim 'when liability cannot
be seriously challenged'.
With the police report or other evidence of facts, one
107