Greffier in France on the way to an independent body of jurisdiction

On 2 February 2011 the President of the European Union of Rechtspfleger (EUR) Thomas Kappl met the French Minister of Justice Michel Mercier at the Ministry of Justice at the Place Vendome in Paris. In the presence of the Chairman of the French association Union Syndicale Autonome Justice (U.S.A.J.) Philippe Gilabert and the board members Brigitte Bruneau-Berchere and Jean-Jacques Kuster Kappl handed over to the minister the Green Paper on a European Rechtspfleger and the report of the CEPEJ, in which in Chapter 8 the Greffier is shown as an independent body of jurisdiction.

Michel Mercier is the third Minister of Justice during the presidency of Nicolas Sarkozy after Rachida Dati, now a Member of the European Parliament, and Michèle Alliot-Marie, who got the Green Paper on 8 October 2009 in La Grande Motte, and he is appointed since 14 November 2010 in the office.

The Place Vendome, originally called as Place Louis le Grand, is one of the five royal squares. Designed by the architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart, the facades were built on the rectangular space. In the center there was the first equestrian statue of King Louis XIV, which was replaced in the French Revolution by the Vendôme Column with a statue of Napoleon I in the style of a Roman emperor.

The Ministry of Justice is located at number 13, the Hôtel de Bourvallais. By decree of the King of 1718 it became the Chancellor's Office. The first incumbent was the Guard of Seals (Garde des Sceaux) and Minister of Justice. The official designation is the 23rd of June 2009 "Minister of Justice and Freedom".

In the conversation with the President of E.U.R. the Minister stated that he would intend the transfer of judicial functions to the Greffier in the legislative process. This reflects the opinion of Professor Guinchard about the need for a Greffier juridictionnel, leading to a European Rechtspfleger in France.

The chairman of the U.S.A.J. Philippe Gilabert discussed with the minister the amendment of the statutes and the legal position of the Greffier in France, mainly due to the transfer of the judge’s tasks to the Greffier so that an independent body of jurisdiction is established alongside the judge.

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