Clerks to the commercial courts have read the draft bill for increase in activities issued to the Council of State on 18/11/2014.

The profession regrets that legal arguments and principles presented in the framework of exchanges with the Ministry for Economy and parliamentarians are not taken into account and is surprised that the draft bill was drafted whilst the Competition Authority had not yet handed down its opinion!

The government has maintained measures which lead to breaking the back of the commercial legal public service of which the effectiveness is however recognised by users and local authorities.

The profession is firmly opposed to this "reform":

- Because the proposed measures will lead to job losses, due to a break in the financial balance of registry offices to the commercial courts

- Because the plan to open up nationally and internationally personal data of companies from the trade and companies register is dangerous, unconstitutional and runs contrary to European legislation

- Because reform of the pricing system will inevitably lead to an increase in prices for legal procedures and will harm access by companies to commercial procedures

- Because this unilateral questioning of the principles of public service delegation conferred to clerks is illegal and harms fundamental rights

- Because the financial independence of commercial justice is attacked and the first to suffer are companies

- Because organisation of justice cannot be undertaken by an exclusively economic approach

- Because once more it makes France go backwards in a domain where its effectiveness is recognised at European level

In order to defend access to commercial justice and to protect legal security and efficiency of the Trade and Companies Register, the National Council of Clerks to the Commercial Courts has organised a general meeting on 27 November 2014 and will decide on future actions of the profession.

Download the press release of the National Council of Clerks from its website.