Judicial Law and Organisation of the Courts
The Code judiciaire as backbone
This domain tests the rules governing jurisdiction, competence, and the machinery of justice. Know the hierarchy: justice of the peace, court of first instance (with its family and civil sections), enterprise court, labour court, court of appeal, and the Court of Cassation. Understand the distinction between absolute competence (subject matter, public order) and relative competence (territory), and the consequences of raising them.
Jurisdiction and procedure
The Code sets the rules on territorial competence, connexity, and lis pendens. Master the general principles of civil procedure: the adversarial principle, the duty to state reasons, the right to a judge within a reasonable time, and the prohibition of self-help. Know the rules on summons, appearances, default, and the closing of debates.
Courts and personnel
Understand the role of the public prosecutor's office, the judicial officers, and the High Council of Justice in appointments and discipline. Know the rules on incompatibility, recusal, and the independence and impartiality guarantees.
Cassation
Cassation reviews legality, not facts. Know the grounds (violation of law, procedural defects, failure to state reasons) and that the Court does not re-evaluate evidence.
Traps
Questions often confuse absolute and relative competence, or ask whether a party can waive a rule of public order. Territorial clauses in contracts are valid only within limits. Watch the distinction between the court's subject-matter competence and the appeal thresholds.
Rule of thumb
First identify the claim's nature (civil, family, commercial, labour). Then check absolute competence, then territory, then the applicable procedural route. If a rule is of public order, it cannot be set aside by agreement.