SCP LESOURD

Avocat aux Conseils

In France, any litigant may refer a case to the supreme courts. For this reason there is a profession which is specifically dedicated to advising and representing litigants who wish to bring their case before these courts: this is the role of the “avocats au Conseil d’Etat et à la Cour de cassation”, also called “avocats aux Conseils”.

These two supreme courts have a common bar, consisting of some 60 firms reuniting some 100 specialized attorneys: l’Ordre des avocats au Conseil d’État et à la Cour de cassation..

SPECIFIC ASPECTS

The “avocats aux Conseils” are the only people able to defend litigants in cases with mandatory representation before the “Conseil d’Etat” and the “Cour de cassation”, and also before the “Tribunal des conflits”.

Before the Criminal Division of the “Cour de cassation”, they alone can submit defence memoranda or produce further pleadings after a period of ten days after the appeal for reversal.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

As an extension of their specific activities, the “avocats aux Conseils” can also represent their clients before other supreme courts: national (“Conseil constitutionnel”), european (European Court of Human Rights, Court of Justice of the European Union, General Court of the European Union) and international.

In the administrative field, they also represent their clients before the ordinary (“tribunaux administratifs”, “cours administratives d’appel”) and specialized (“juridictions ordinales”, “juridictions financières”, etc.) administrative courts, and also before the independent administrative authorities (“Autorité de la concurrence”, “Conseil Supérieur de l’audiovisuel”, “Autorité des marchés financiers”, etc.), or directly before the public administrations.

Their litigation activity goes with an activity of consultation, whether this relates to deciding to lodge an appeal for reversal, to seeking an effective remedy in administrative matters, or to all questions of law.