GIR's Europe, Middle East, and Africa Investigations Review 2024: France chapter
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White & Case is pleased to have been involved in GIR's Europe, Middle East, and Africa Investigations Review 2024. This volume contains insight and thought leadership from pre-eminent practitioners in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. This edition covers France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland and the UAE, and has overviews on how UK organisations are structuring their investigations teams and the pros and cons of making a self-report.
Kami Haeri and Malik Touanssa have co-authored the France chapter, named "Navigating the evolving investigations ecosystem".
The year 2023 marked the 10th anniversary of the creation of the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF), France's main judicial authority for white-collar crime and investigations. During these 10 years, the French legal and procedural landscape experienced major changes, such as the Sapin II Law and the creation of the French Anti-Corruption Agency (AFA). France is now internationally recognised for its compliance and investigations legislation. There is growing interest in the prosecution of environmental crime and a continued focus on financial misconduct. The judicial authorities are also seeking to clarify this complex landscape by offering more rights to the investigated individuals and guidance on the new procedural tools.
The France chapter discusses the following points:
- The PNF and its Guidelines for the Implementation of the French Deferred Prosecution Agreement (CJIP)
- Guilty plea procedure
- AFA-PNF guidelines on internal investigations
- Procedural challenges before the court
- Police custody
- Environmental crime
- Greenwashing
- Rights of the defence
This article was first published on Global Investigations Review in May 2024; for further in-depth analysis, please visit GIR Europe, Middle East and Africa Investigations Review.
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