Tribunal d'instance
In France prior to 2020, the Tribunal d'instance was a judicial lower court of record of first instance for general civil suits and included a criminal division, the Police Court, which heard cases of misdemeanors or summary offences. Since it had original jurisdiction, the Court's rulings could be appealed to a French appellate court or Supreme Court. Prior to 1958, the court was known as a Justice of the Peace Court until the judicial restructuring of 1958.
In the Court, proceedings were conducted based on oral testimony and arguments, and, unlike in higher courts, legal counsel is not mandatory.
Other judicial courts of original jurisdiction were:
- Magistrate courts - for small claims and petty misdemeanors
- High courts - handled complex suits and had a criminal section, the Criminal Court, that hears cases involving lesser felonies.
- Commercial court
- Employment Tribunal
- Agricultural Land Tribunal
- Social security tribunal. These were eliminated in 2020.
Degrees of jurisdiction
As a general rule, the French court system is divided into three degrees of jurisdiction:- Original or general jurisdiction for the first hearing of cases;
- Appellate jurisdiction for appeals from lower courts;
- Courts of last resort for appeals from appellate courts on the interpretation of law.
Duties
The Court has civil jurisdiction over personal property claims, monetary claims not exceeding 10,000 euros, and other civil actions for which the court has exclusive jurisdiction, those being:- Private property leases
- Disputes relating to the elections of personnel delegates.
- the distance questions and height of the plantations.
- the movable credit to the consumption up to €21,500.
- Asset seizure
- Defamation suits
- Guardianship of minors and disabled persons
- Voter registration