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INTRODUCTION I. A STRUCTURED PROFESSION II. LEGAL SECURITY FOR EVERYONE III. PROFESSIONALS AT THE HEART OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY IV. A SPECIALIST IN FAMILY AND REAL ESTATE LAW V. SERVING LOCAL DEVELOPMENT AND BUSINESS WORLD VI. INTERNATIONAL EXPERTISE 2
THE ROLE OF THE NOTAIRE The French notaire is both a sworn public official and a freelance professional. He is subject to strict rules and rigorous controls and is legally and financially liable for the deed he drafts. As English solicitors, notaires do probate, divorce settlements, and estate planning. But, the major difference is that they don t plead before Courts. Notaires are well known in France for property issues. They do not only draft the sale agreement between the parties, but they also make the sale legally secure, and do all the necessary formalities after completion. Moreover, they can assess the property, negotiate the transaction, and manage the property after completion. As family advisors, notaires can advise you on the inheritance tax implications of your purchase, and, on a general point of view, deal with all personal issues like pre-nuptial agreements, divorce, wills, succession law, etc. They also propose appropriate legal and tax solutions to the changes occurring in family structures. As legal and financial advisors to families, notaires help to prevent conflicts and, consequently, to minimise the number of lawsuits. As consultants to business owners and companies, notaires also advise and draft contracts for business owners in all aspects of business law. They are entilted to organise auction sales for real estate properties. 3
I. A STRUCTURED PROFESSION Established throughout the territory according to citizens needs, notaires play a major role with companies, territorial authorities and rural areas. The profession is structured on a national and regional level. The Conseil supérieur du notariat is a public service institution, and the only body empowered to speak on behalf of all the notaires in France. Notaires operate before a contract is signed, checking the co-contractor s status, legitimacy and capacity and confirming the proper application of the law; they advise the parties, make the contract legally secure, and ensure that all parties have correctly understood. Notaires are totally independent. Notaires centralize all the procedures and financing transaction relative to real estate transactions. As the only profession safeguarding documents for at least 75 years, notaires use a single, secure, paperless archiving system to store family records and completed transactions. II. LEGAL SECURITY FOR EVERYONE Notaires are impartial legal specialists who advise their clients (citizens, companies and communities), inform them about legislation and provide bespoke solutions. Legal security is guaranteed by the effects of the notarial deed, known as an authentic instrument, which has the character of a public deed. As soon as deed is signed, the notaire immediately takes care of financial transfers and the proper payment of prices. This profession provides legal security to the State and its citizens through: - The authenticity of instruments, - The registration of wills, - Meticulous updates of the Land Registry, - The calculation and collection of taxes. 4
III. PROFESSIONALS AT THE HEART OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY The first legal activity to be computerized, starting is the Seventies with the central register of Wills and testaments, Notaires de France have constantly innovated ever since. - The 1990s saw the introduction of the first real estate databases and a secure intranet network linking the 4,500 offices throughout France, - MICEN is a centralized archive introduced in 2008 to preserve authentic instruments in digitized form, marking the development of the first electronic authentic deeds, - On 11 October 2018, the first authentic electronic remote act was signed. This step joins in the continuity and the willingness to digitize the profession while preserving the legal security. IV. A SPECIALIST IN FAMILY AND REAL ESTATE LAW As trusted third parties of families, notaires act for private citizens in areas regarding family situations, relationship and inheritance. They provide advice with total impartiality and draw up various legal documents such as marriage contracts, civil partnerships (PACS), gifts, wills, and real estate market. Negotiation and real estate management are part of the activities of notaires, meeting the needs of customers. V. SERVING LOCAL DEVELOPMENT AND BUSINESS WORLD The notaire plays a major role with companies, rural areas and territorial authorities through its legal skills and local networks. Thanks to their overall view of the company manager s assets, notaires can advise on the most appropriate legal and tax solutions regarding the creation of a firm, its management, or its sale or assignment. They advise entrepreneurs on their matrimonial and tax regimes. They provide assistance to companies in terms of corporate real estate, real estate management, commercial leases and tax systems for companies. 5
Regional planning, urban development, the environment, public donations and bequests, the management of public property, pre-emption rights and expropriation are all fields of expertise covered by notaires on behalf of local authorities. VI. INTERNATIONAL EXPERTISE Notaires de France are actively involved in promoting the merits of preventive justice, and advising foreign governments and international organizations. Sought by many governments to provide expertise in the land sector and more broadly, to share legal expertise, they are engaged in many actions in the world: international exchanges, education, partnerships, joint events. 6