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Judicial review

Verified 29 April 2020 - Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister), Ministry of Justice

Proceedings before criminal courts

Published on 19 November 2020

Since 20 November 2020, criminal courts may amend the rules of procedure applicable to the cases they deal with in order to continue their activities during the state of health emergency. Changes may include:

  • Access by the public and lawyers to courts and courtrooms
  • Use of the single judge procedure
  • Conduct of the hearing or hearing by audiovisual means of telecommunication
  • Transfer of a case to another court of the same jurisdiction

These possibilities for amending the rules of procedure are provided for in Order No. 2020-1401 of 18 November 2020 .. They will cease one month after the end of the state of health emergency, on March 16, 2021.

Judicial review is a measure that prevents the release of a suspected person offense.. It is decided by a criminal judge when a suspect cannot remain free during an investigation or while awaiting trial. The judge sets out the obligations that the suspect must meet. If the person does not comply with his obligations, he may be placed in remand.. The measure shall be adopted by decision of the judge or at the latest at the end of the trial.

Judicial review is a measure that subjects the person involved in a criminal case to one or more obligations. This measure is taken during the investigation or pending trial.

Judicial review shall be decided by an examining magistrate or a judge of liberty and detention.

Judicial review may involve an accused person who is in one of the following situations:

  • Awaiting trial following a preliminary investigation or blatant investigation directed by the Prosecutor
  • Review during a judicial information the examining magistrate.

Please note

a minor may be placed under judicial supervision from the age of 13.

The accused must be punished by imprisonment.

Judicial review may be ordered as security measure to prevent the person from committing a new offense.

It may also be set up to allow the investigation to proceed smoothly. This includes ensuring the person's presence before the judge.

FYI  

if judicial review is not sufficient, the person may be placed in remand or under house arrest under electronic surveillance..

The procedure for placing a suspect under judicial supervision depends on the status given to the suspect.

The suspect can be reviewed in judicial information, i.e. an investigation conducted by an examining magistrate.

The suspect can be warned, i.e. awaiting judgment by the criminal court after an investigation led by the public prosecutor.

Examined by an examining magistrate

In a judicial investigation, a person review may be placed under judicial control. Judicial review may be decided at the time of the person's indictment or throughout the proceedings.

At review

The examining magistrate may place a person under judicial supervision whom he has just indicted.

Before taking his decision, the judge must ask the public prosecutor for his opinion.

The judge may order a judicial review only if it is necessary for the judicial review.

If the examining magistrate considers that the judicial review is not sufficient for the purposes of the judicial investigation, he may request remand.. In this case, he must refer the matter to the JLD.

The JLD may refuse pre-trial detention and place the accused under judicial supervision.

The accused may challenge the decision to place the accused under judicial supervision.

The appeal shall be made by a statement to the clerk of the judge who rendered the decision.

Who shall I contact

The appeal shall be heard by the Examining Chamber of the Court of Appeal.

After review

In the course of judicial proceedings, the examining magistrate or the judge responsible for freedoms and detention may place a person under judicial control.

Following an application for release or at the end of a remand, an accused person may be released. A judge who accepts an application for release or who does not extend pre-trial detention may place the accused under judicial supervision.

The accused may challenge the decision to place the accused under judicial supervision.

The appeal shall be made by a statement to the clerk of the judge who rendered the decision.

Who shall I contact

The appeal shall be heard by the Examining Chamber of the Court of Appeal.

Defendant awaiting judgment by the correctional court

An accused may be placed under judicial supervision pending the hearing at which he is to be tried. This may be a hearing of immediate appearance or a hearing following a notice of meeting.. The immediate appearance allows the prosecutor to bring the accused to trial immediately after his detention.

In the case of a summons on the record, the defendant is not immediately tried. He shall be tried within a maximum period of 6 months after his custody..

Immediate appearance

Where the immediate appearance hearing cannot take place immediately after a police custody, the Public Prosecutor may request the remand of the accused.

The judge of liberty and detention must examine the application after hearing the accused or his lawyer.

The judge may refuse pretrial detention. In that case, he may order a judicial review. Judicial review remains in place until the hearing.

There is no appeal against this decision.

Convocation on report

The public prosecutor may request a judicial review when the accused has to go to court following a notice of meeting..

The judge of liberty and detention must examine the application after hearing the accused and his lawyer.

The judge may accept or refuse the establishment of judicial control.

The decision to place the accused under judicial supervision may be contested by the accused. The appeal shall be made by a statement to the Registrar of the Judge for Freedoms and Detention.

Who shall I contact

FYI  

following an application for release of an accused detained, a judicial review may also be ordered by the court hearing a case.

The person under judicial supervision must comply with obligations and prohibitions chosen by the judge.

The obligations and prohibitions that may be set by the judge are provided for by law.

The judge shall decide which are necessary in the light of the case and the personality of the defendant. These obligations and prohibitions must allow the person to be supervised and prevent the offense from being renewed.

Limiting freedom of movement

The person under judicial supervision may be restricted in his freedom of movement by prohibitions and obligations chosen by the judge.

Possible prohibitions include:

  • Exiting certain territorial limits set by the judge
  • Absence from home except under conditions laid down by the judge
  • To visit certain places determined by the judge, including the family's home, in case of domestic violence
  • Participate in demonstrations on the public roads in places determined by the judge

The possible obligations are:

  • Inform the judge of any movement beyond the specified limits
  • Leave the family home in case of domestic violence
  • Provide identity documents, including passport

Monitoring

The person under judicial supervision may be supervised by prohibitions and obligations chosen by the judge.

Possible prohibitions include:

  • Meeting with certain persons determined by the judge, including the victim of violence committed within the couple
  • Perform certain professional or social activities
  • Perform an activity in relation to minors

The possible obligations are:

  • Periodically visit (for example, weekly or monthly) the police station or the gendarmerie. We're talking about pointing..
  • Submit to socio-educational follow-up (professional activity or training)
  • Submit to medical follow-up

Medical follow-up includes the following obligations:

  • Submit to examination, treatment or care measures even under hospitalization (for detoxification or psychological/psychiatric treatment)
  • Submitting to health, social or psychological care in respect of domestic violence

Financial guarantees

Deposit

The judge may bond, i.e. the payment of a certain amount of money by the person under judicial control. The judge must determine the amount of money to be paid and must divide it into two parts.

A first part of the bond must guarantee the fulfillment of the other obligations of judicial control and the presence of the person at judicial summonses. This part of the money can be returned to the person if he respects his obligations and surrenders to the summonses.

A second part of the bond must be used to compensate the victim in the event of a conviction. This money is returned to the person if he is not convicted.

Payment of family expenses

The judge may ask the person under judicial supervision to show cause for payment of the following family charges:

Other prohibitions

Other prohibitions that the judge may decide are:

  • Driving a vehicle or driving certain vehicles with the obligation to hand over the driving license if necessary
  • Hold or carry a weapon
  • Issue checks

The judge may add or remove obligations at any time. It can also end judicial review.

The person under judicial control may request at any time that the measure be amended or that the measure be terminated. It may request the removal of an obligation or the adjustment of an obligation.

Example :

A person's judicial supervision shall require him to go to the police station or gendarmerie once a week for a pointing.. The person has long complied with this obligation. She can request an amendment to go to the police station or the gendarmerie only once a month. The person may also request the removal of this obligation.

The person must apply to the examining magistrate if judicial information is in progress. This is the case where a person is review by an examining magistrate.

If the person is awaiting judgment, he or she is warned before the correctional court, or accused before the court of assises. It must address its request to the court which is to judge the case (the correctional court or the court of assizes).

When the person requests the end of judicial review (we are talking about release), the decision must be made within 5 days.

Examined

The accused person must apply to the examining magistrate for an amendment. Even if the judicial review was decided by the judge of liberty and detention, the request must be received by the examining magistrate.

The application must be made by the accused person or his lawyer by a declaration to the Registrar of the examining magistrate.

Where the accused person or his lawyer does not reside within the jurisdiction of the examining magistrate, the application may be made by registered letter with notice of receipt addressed to the examining magistrate.

Who shall I contact

Before taking a decision on the request for amendment, the judge shall request the opinion of the public prosecutor.

The accused may appeal against the decision of the examining magistrate.

The appeal shall be made by a statement to the clerk of the judge who rendered the decision.

The appeal shall be heard by the Examining Chamber of the Court of Appeal.

Warning  

at the end of a judicial inquiry, the investigating judge may decide to keep the person under judicial control until the judgment is delivered before the correctional court or the court of assizes. In this case, the application for the modification of the judicial control must be made to the court of judgment.

Warned

The application for a change in judicial review must be made to the court that will decide the case. This is the correctional court.

The application must be made by the defendant or his lawyer by a declaration to the clerk of the court concerned.

Where the accused or his lawyer does not reside within the jurisdiction of the court, the request may be made by registered letter with notice of receipt.

Who shall I contact

The accused may appeal the decision refusing the amendment.

The appeal shall be made by a statement to the clerk of the court who made the decision.

Accused

An accused who awaits trial before the Court of Assizes must make his application to change the judicial review in the examining chamber of the Court of Appeal.

The application must be made by the accused or his lawyer by a declaration to the clerk of the examining division.

Where the accused or his lawyer does not reside within the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal, the application may be made by registered letter with notice of receipt.

Who shall I contact

The accused may appeal the decision that refuses the amendment.

The appeal shall be made by a statement to the Registrar of the Examining Chamber.

Warning  

if the trial of assizes is under way, the application for the modification of the judicial review must be made to the court of assizes.

When a person under judicial supervision does not voluntarily comply with his obligations, the judge may terminate judicial supervision. We're talking about revocation judicial review.

The revocation judicial review is a decision of the judge that ends judicial review.

The examining magistrate or the judge of liberty and detention (JLD) may take a arrest warrant or warrant to bring if a person does not respect his judicial control.

Please note

the police or the gendarmerie may arrest a person if there are reasons to believe that he or she is not respecting his or her judicial control. The person may be detained for up to 24 hours.

The revocation of judicial review allows to request the remand of the person.

The JLD must decide whether or not to remand the person in custody.

Such a judge shall be seised by the examining magistrate if the application concerns a person under investigation.

In the other cases, it is the public prosecutor who requests remand in custody.

Judicial review of the reviewed may end when judicial information..

Judicial review shall cease for warned or accused with the trial.

Examined

Judicial review may be terminated during judicial proceedings, in particular following an application filed by an accused.

Judicial review may also be terminated when the judge closes the judicial inquiry, i.e. completes the investigation.

During judicial investigation

The person charged with the measure may request that the judicial review (release) be terminated at any time.

The application must be made by a declaration to the Registrar of the examining magistrate.

The judge must seek the opinion of the public prosecutor. The judge must decide within 5 days. If the time limit is not respected, the accused person may refer the case to the Appeals Chamber directly.

The Public Prosecutor may also request an end to judicial review at any time.

The examining magistrate, after obtaining the opinion of the public prosecutor, may voluntarily terminate the judicial review without a request from the accused.

At the end of the judicial investigation

When the judge closes the judicial inquiry, he may issue a decision not or a decision to try the accused.

When the judge issues a decision not to proceed, the judicial review ends.

Judicial review may continue after the completion of the judicial investigation only when the person concerned is to be tried.

In the case of a trial before the Court of Assizes, judicial review shall be maintained until the trial.

In the case of a trial before the correctional court, the judicial review is terminated. However, the examining magistrate may decide to maintain the judicial review until the trial by a separate decision which must state the reasons for maintaining it.

Accused

The judicial review ends at the end of the trial, whether or not the person is convicted.

However, in the event of a conviction conditional sentence, the court may maintain the obligations arising from judicial review.

FAQ