Court

Motorist caught speeding at 136 km/h on Nice’s Promenade des Anglais

Man taken into custody after driving at high speeds in 50 km/h zone

Seven sentenced over €1m energy grant fraud in France

Homeowners were unaware their personal information had been used to secure public renovation funds under the MaPrimeRénov’ scheme

Investigation rules out deliberate poisoning in deaths of three dogs near lake in south-east France

Environmental analysis finds cyanobacteria in lake water

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Airbnb landlord in France must repay €10,000 over renovation works

A French court ruled that ongoing renovation work and reduced natural light significantly affected the renter’s enjoyment of the property

France homeowner faces legal trouble over 4cm land encroachment on neighbour’s property

Any construction encroaching on a neighbour’s land may be required to be removed

French woman to pay €30,000 in compensation for beating lynx to death

Woman hit lynx as it entered her chicken coop

French firm fined over €300,000 for ‘abusive’ sale calls

The company specialises in energy-efficiency renovation work

French dentist found guilty of ‘mutilating’ patients by removing healthy teeth for profit

More than 40 patients detail severe complications following treatment

Man sent to prison over Linky fraud, a first in France

The man received a nine month sentence for his actions

Skier who killed British girl in collision in French Alps convicted of manslaughter

Man crashed into five-year old while skiing on a blue slope in Flaine in 2022

French court orders man to pay €6,000 over defamatory online review

A man posted a negative Google review after he was unhappy with medical care received by his wife, but was later ordered to pay damages and legal costs for defamation

Cat owner in France must pay neighbour €100 after pet enters garden

Judge reduces fine after ruling that cat's visits to neighbour's 'inherent to its nature'

Nine face suspended prison sentences for online attacks targeting Brigitte Macron

Defence lawyers deny that the accused acted as a ‘mob’. Mrs Macron’s daughter says the campaign badly affected her mother

Fatal HGV crashes: Goodyear in court in France over tyre defect claims

Investigators allege the firm knew about the problem but did not issue a recall

Return to door-to-door home rubbish collection expected for many in France

The decision could set a precedent for up to two million people in different areas of France

Family of French explorer who died in US Titan tragedy sue for $50m

Paul-Henri Nargeolet, nicknamed ‘Mr Titanic’ due to his decades-long interest in the famous wreck, was one of five people who died in the disaster

Man ‘plotted to kill’ osteopath who left him disabled in France

The man, who suffered irreversible damage to his spinal cord, is accused of hiring hitmen to engineer a ‘revenge’ killing

A cartoon by artist Perry Taylor of a French garden, involving a humorous dispute between two neighbours.

Explained: How to settle disputes without going to court in France

We look at the new ‘amicable’ process for everyday civil claims introduced to find out-of-court solutions

Search for Irishman who has left French home abandoned for 22 years

Property is to be demolished following a court order as it is starting to fall down onto the street

Neighbour murdered Briton in France after she asked to borrow tape

The 67-year-old had moved to France in 2016 and was ‘living her dream’

Do Britons have a right to a translator in a French court?

We look at whether the state has provisions for non-French speakers

Homeowner sues French fire service over blaze in his garden

He claimed firefighters did not do enough to prevent reignition of a fire in a nearby field

A view of a gendarmerie vehicle in France

Covid-19: French state guilty of stopping son visiting dying father

‘The last words my dad said to me on the phone were: “Don’t worry, we’ll see each other again.”’

Couple cannot demolish and rebuild French home even if not protected

The 1950s building is said to be of ‘heritage interest’ despite this not being officially recognised

Cockerel in French village must leave as it crows too loudly

‘He’s just doing his job as a rooster!’ claims the bird’s owner but neighbours say they cannot sleep

Cat compensation case is 'turning point' for animal rights in France

The sum due - €100 - is mainly symbolic but has been welcomed by animal-rights defenders

Explainer: How criminal courts and jury service work in France

We look at the active role of judges, how cases are tried and why the system is so slow

A view of town signs at the entrance of the town of Gaillac, Tarn, Occitanie

Four sent to jail over ‘home-jacking’ in south-west France

The masked gang arrived at home of retired couple armed with a gun and demanded valuables. The wife and a house cleaner were tied up

A child playing piano with the help of an adult teacher

Couple in court for homeschooling son without permission in France

‘We are not separatists, we are not dangerous,’ say the couple, who have been supported by homeschooling associations

French farmer fined €105,000 over ‘ugly’ tractors

Neighbour complained of an ‘open-air dump’ near his upmarket gîte. Farmer says neighbour used misleading images in court

A view of a wind turbine in the landscape in France

Noise, bird deaths: Windfarm ordered to close for first time in France

Campaign groups successfully argued that the turbines were causing harm to birds and residents

State pays €95,000 to couple after hundreds of bats invade French home

The property lost 30% of its value due to damage caused by the protected species

Wooden house passed off as brick fools new owners in France

The couple bought the house believing it was made of brick but later found that fake cladding had been placed around wooden structure

A view of a prison officer locking a prison gate

14 years’ jail for man who escaped from French prison by helicopter

The gangster was said to have been inspired by prison-break films

Bid to stop marmot hunting in France fails

Six environmental associations denounced the hunting as ‘scandalous’ but the court did not rule in their favour

French court orders creators of Canadian pirate website to pay €489m

The sum equates to the estimated revenue lost by the film and music industry due to illegal downloading via the site

How you must try to resolve neighbour disputes amicably in France

A mediator must always be used before taking certain issues to court

French state faces legal action for not protecting people from hunters

Two associations say that the ‘unprecedented’ case is calling for no-hunt days and claims that 70% of people in France ‘do not feel safe’ during hunting season

France condemned over its lack of masks during Covid pandemic

Paris court rules that professionals put at risk can claim compensation

A ski station panorama showing people skiing and on chair lifts over snow covered ground and trees

French ski stations appeal higher costs for seasonal employees

They argue that their fixed-term contracts are different to the short-term contracts on which the government is levying extra charges

Do you need to speak French to do a road awareness course?

The requirement to undertake a course resulted from a driving incident

A view of the 13th century Mairie in Angoulême

Controversial ban on public sitting in French town partially suspended

A court said restrictions on sitting or lying in public spaces in Angoulême represented ‘a disproportionate infringement of freedom’

Noisy neighbours: France’s most outlandish and notorious disputes

We look at five of the country’s most unusual complaints in recent years

SNCF fined over crushing cat taking refuge under TGV at French station

The state-owned railway operator was found guilty of negligence

Debt collector of UK fines ‘illicitly’ got data of drivers in France

That is the claim of 102 plaintiffs who have filed a complaint over fines relating to low emission zones in London

Nearly 1,800 to file complaint to French carmaker Renault over defects

Their lawyer has called for a criminal investigation. Renault says its 'cars remain safe'

European court set to rule on French lawyers’ Brexit case

A June date has been set for a ruling about Britons’ EU citizenship rights

Legal bid to overturn ban on above-ground pools in southern France

Restrictions to tackle drought conditions in Pyrénées-Orientales stigmatise swimming pools, says the federation bringing the legal challenge

French serial killer’s ex may face trial over murder of UK student

Monique Olivier, the ex-wife of killer Michel Fourniret, could face justice over the killing of British student Joanna Parrish

Nestlé agrees to compensate French victims of deadly pizza scandal

The agreement comes after two children died and dozens fell seriously ill after eating contaminated pizza last year

A photo of an Air France plane flying against a blue sky

Airbus and Air France cleared over plane crash that killed 228 people

‘All that remains … is despair, dismay and anger,’ said an association representing relatives of the crash victims

France’s constitutional court sets date for ruling on pension reforms

It will decide on the constitutional legality of the project and whether it should be put to a national referendum

French language defenders sue Notre-Dame over English translations

Campaigners argue only translating the cathedral’s signs into English promotes dominance of that language

‘I drew in five minutes the absolute pain of a lifetime’

Retired courtroom artist shares her many years of experience covering France’s most memorable and harrowing trials

Where is the best place to buy a second home in France?

Our property news wrap also looks at a neighbour dispute over a right of way, liability for latent defects when selling a property and MaPrimeRénov' bugs

Hamlet’s ‘noisy’ cockerel can continue crowing, rules French court

Saturnin was at the centre of legal action after a neighbour claimed the bird disturbed their sleep

Battle over frog noise in Dordogne not over

The couple ordered to fill in their garden pond to stop the noise of frogs croaking disturbing neighbours say they will appeal.

French rural residents ‘must be protected from pesticides’

The Conseil d’Etat has ruled that minimum distances between homes and pesticide-approved agricultural land insufficient

Servier launches Paris appeal over Mediator ‘slimming pill’ scandal

It comes after the manufacturing lab was found guilty of aggravated deception and manslaughter in connection with the drug which has been linked to hundreds of deaths

'Voir dire': You need Latin not French to understand this legal phrase

Language ‘false friends’ can confuse translation but a bit of Latin can help in this (court) case

Does the EU have a small claims court like the UK does?

We look at mechanisms which aim to protect consumer rights

A close-up photo of CBD products with a mini blackboard showing the scientific compound

French court definitively allows sale of CBD flowers and products

The new Conseil d’Etat decision overturns a previous government ban and has been welcomed by the industry

ECHR dismisses Zemmour appeal and upholds inciting hatred conviction

The court rejected the former presidential candidate’s ‘freedom of expression’ appeal and said his comments were ‘derogatory and discriminatory’

Six months’ jail demand for French hunter who shot man dead in garden

‘I did not properly identify my target. It was my mistake, I regret it,’ hunter tells court. He said he had mistaken man chopping wood for a wild boar

Trial to begin over hunt accident death of 25-year-old in his garden

Both the hunter who fired the fatal shot and the organiser of the hunt will be tried for involuntary homicide

French hospital ordered to pay Jehovah’s Witness over transfusion

A French court has ruled a hospital must compensate a Jehovah’s Witness after staff administered a blood transfusion which the patient had explicitly refused

Trial date set for French hunter after man shot dead in garden

The hunter will be tried for involuntary homicide along with the person who organised the hunt on that day

French farmer on a mission to prove 4G tower is harming his cattle

He defied the highest French court to turn the mast off and ‘the difference in the cows was remarkable’

French drivers force Nissan and Renault to court over ‘faulty engines’

The class action group wants the release of internal documents which, it claims, show the firms knew about the problems

Ryanair’s €8.67million fine for ‘Irish law workers’ in France upheld

The low-cost airline was found to have knowingly sought to circumvent regulations and in particular to have wrongly used ‘E101 forms’ to benefit from lower charges

French man faces legal battle over yurts he rents for free to families

The 60-year-old from near Nantes says he was forced to act due to skyrocketing rent prices. His local mairie says he must dismantle the yurts as he does not have a building permit