FRANCE: An Introduction to Transportation: Shipping
France has the second-largest maritime area in the world. This geographical peculiarity, together with its historical background, has contributed to the development of a strong maritime ecosystem. Many French ports are modernising in order to face competition from their neighbours.
This ecosystem is made up of a wide range of operators. These include ship-owners of all types of commercial vessels, such as passenger ships, cruise ships, fishing vessels and support vessels, as well as freight forwarders and various world-famous companies whose production facilities are located close to French ports.
With 13 million French people owning a boat, the French maritime economy also includes a large number of pleasure yachts, from the smallest dinghies to mega-yachts. There is an obvious interest in the Mediterranean climate and the beautiful coastline of the South of France. As a result, yachts and mega-yachts, as well as the services that go with them, are mainly based in the South of France or, during the winter, in the French Antilles.
Many regatta yachts also spend most of their time in the South of France. Racing yachts, such as the Imoca or the Ultimate, are more likely to be built, based and trained in Brittany or nearby. They take part in famous sailing races such as the Vendée Globe, the Transat Jacques Vabre, the Route du Rhum, or in crossing or world tour records. They are at the origin of many important innovations in the world of sailing and navigation.
Especially since Brexit, the fishing industry in France has also been of strategic importance for the country and the European Union. Here too, there is a wide variety of fishermen and vessels: from small artisanal day boats to 130-metre industrial vessels with dozens of fishermen at sea for months at a time.
That is not to mention the strategic role of science in this ecosystem: the French oceanographic fleet is the fifth largest in the world.
This strong and dynamic ecosystem of business, leisure and scientific activities is supported by banks, insurance companies with specialised departments, ship-yards and repair yards used to adapting to the different needs of these different people and activities. Commercial ship-yards face stiff competition from countries with lower labour costs, but they can rely on their experience, innovation and technical skills. Highly specialised yards for yachts, cruise ships, research vessels and military vessels are known to be at the forefront. The same can be said for smaller local yards, such as those specialising in small to medium-sized fishing vessels, keelboats or merchant ships.
The importance of this maritime ecosystem has grown steadily and is now of paramount importance to the country’s economy. Under the impetus of the current government, since the “Fontenoy du Maritime” in 2021, major projects and policies have been launched to enhance the attractiveness of the French flag – which includes the RIF, which is dedicated to commercial vessels, among its six different flags – and the country’s maritime economy.
The French maritime sector has been taking on board environmental issues for a number of years. While the most visible evidence of this is the numerous offshore wind farms being built around the French coastline, innovation with established players and start-ups seems to be developing and, in the near future, offering other tools and solutions to meet the green energy challenge, such as sail-cargo and state-of-the-art LNG-fuelled cruise and container ships. This trend is likely to accelerate soon, as the President of the French Republic announced in October 2023 that a EUR1.5 billion fund will be made available to decarbonise French energy.
To serve this market, which includes both French and foreign players, there are a limited number of specialised law firms, of which Tarin Lemarie is one of the top ten. Shipping law firms are mainly located in Paris and Marseille.
The French court system has also evolved to accommodate the specificities of maritime litigation. For maritime matters and, more generally, for offences committed at sea, France has a specialised criminal jurisdiction. As for the commercial courts, some of them have developed specific expertise in maritime matters as a result of the regularity with which they deal with them. Some have become maritime centres, such as Le Havre, Dunkirk and, above all, Marseilles, the latter of which has a chamber specialising in “transport” cases. The courts of Paris and Nanterre (La Défense) are often involved in maritime matters, as many marine insurers are based there and French law allows claimants to bring direct actions against liability insurers.
The Commercial Court of Paris, which has jurisdiction over many freight forwarding claims, has recently established an “international” chamber, where cases with international implications can be dealt with using a special procedure that facilitates their handling, particularly with regard to the use of the English language.
France also has a renowned arbitration court specialising in maritime matters, the Chambre Arbitrable Maritime de Paris (CAMP), which sits in Paris and can hear cases in either French or English.
The French judicial system does not have a discovery or cross-examination mechanism, but the civil courts may appoint a technical expert to investigate a specific issue or event in the presence of all parties involved, including their lawyers and technicians. The court expert then issues a technical report to the court and the parties. This specific procedure is regularly used in maritime cases and often makes it possible to discover information or documents that would have been very difficult to obtain without a court survey. To assist shipping lawyers, France has excellent technical surveyors specialising in maritime matters, most of whom are former officers.
The French shipping and maritime sector is strong, varied and full of opportunities. French maritime lawyers will be at your side to help you find your way.