French Appeal Procedure: Latest Supreme Court Ruling on Respondent Deadline

Q: Why must respondents file their first submissions within three months before French Appeal Courts?

Since 1 January 2011 and the entry into force of the first Magendie Decree, appeal proceedings have been strictly governed by mandatory time limits applicable to both the appellant and the respondent. The appellant must file their submissions with the court registry within 3 months of lodging the appeal, failing which the appeal will be declared void ex officio (Article 908 of the French Code of Civil Procedure). As for the respondent, they must file their submissions in reply — and, where applicable, lodge an incidental or cross‑appeal — within 3 months of receiving the appellant’s submissions (Article 909 of the French Code of Civil Procedure). The introduction of these time limits, often criticised by practitioners, was intended to reduce the length of appeal proceedings.

Sommaire

This is some text inside of a div block.

I. Previous solutions from the French Supreme Court (Cour de cassation)

In most appeal proceedings, the respondent has three months from the notification of the appellant’s submissions to file their first submissions:

The respondent shall, under penalty of inadmissibility raised ex officio, have a period of three months from the notification of the appellant’s submissions provided for in Article 908 to file their submissions with the court and, where applicable, lodge an incidental or provoked appeal. – Article 909 of the French Code of Civil Procedure

Compliance with this deadline is crucial: the Cour de cassation has ruled that a respondent who allows this period to expire cannot file submissions for the entire duration of the appeal proceedings (Civ. 2, 28 January 2016, No. 14-18.712). In practice, this leaves the appellant without an adversary.

If the appellate judgment is overturned before the French Supreme Court, the respondent still cannot file submissions before the remand court. The decision declaring the respondent’s submissions inadmissible before the appellate court remains binding on the remand court (Civ. 2, 18 January 2024, No. 21-22.798).

II. A slight relaxation of previous solutions

In its ruling of 11 September 2025 (No. 24-13.160), the French Supreme Court softened its position: when a legal issue not previously debated before the appelate court is raised ex officio, the respondent must be allowed to submit arguments on that issue before the remand court.

The Court held that when it raises a new legal point ex officio, this constitutes a subsequent event altering the scope of the debate, entitling the respondent to address it before the remand court. Therefore, the respondent may file submissions limited to that specific legal issue (Civ. 2, 11 September 2025, No. 24-13.160).

This decision was based on Article 6(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights, emphasizing that such flexibility is necessary to ensure a fair trial and allow the respondent to defend themselves.

Get in touch

Frequently Asked Questions

Why must respondents file their first submissions within three months before French Appeal Courts?

Since 1 January 2011 and the entry into force of the first Magendie Decree, appeal proceedings have been strictly governed by mandatory time limits applicable to both the appellant and the respondent.

The appellant must file their submissions with the court registry within 3 months of lodging the appeal, failing which the appeal will be declared void ex officio (Article 908 of the French Code of Civil Procedure).

As for the respondent, they must file their submissions in reply — and, where applicable, lodge an incidental or cross‑appeal — within 3 months of receiving the appellant’s submissions (Article 909 of the French Code of Civil Procedure).

The introduction of these time limits, often criticised by practitioners, was intended to reduce the length of appeal proceedings.

Please note: the 3‑month deadline for filing submissions applies only to proceedings with a case management phase. For expedited proceedings (procédure à bref délai), this period is reduced to 2 months.

Can a defaulting respondent file an incidental appeal before the remand court?

No. If the respondent has allowed the three‑month period provided by Article 909 of the French Code of Civil Procedure to expire, they can no longer file an incidental appeal — whether before the original court of appeal or the remand court. The order declaring their submissions inadmissible remains binding on the remand court.

In what situations can a defaulting respondent file submissions again before the remand court?

Since the judgment of 11 September 2025, an exception exists: if the French Supreme Court (Cour de cassation) has raised a legal issue ex officio that was not previously debated before the lower courts, the respondent must be allowed to file submissions on that specific issue before the remand court. This right is based on the requirement of a fair trial (Article 6 § 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights) and applies only within the limits of the issue raised ex officio.