Raphaël MORENON
Evictions and over-indebtedness: debtor protection strategies and the right to housing
By Raphaël MORENON19 September 2025Eviction or over-indebtedness: don't give up! Find out about your rights and the legal solutions available to protect your home in France.
Seizure of digital assets: domain names, cryptoassets and virtual goods
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesThe expansion of the digital economy has given rise to new forms of wealth. Domain names, cryptoassets, virtual goods in metavers: these dematerialised assets represent a very real economic value and, consequently, a major challenge for debt recovery. For creditors, understanding these intangible assets means...Seizure of business assets: goodwill and business licences
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesInitiating collection proceedings against a business debtor often involves targeting its most valuable assets. While the seizure of company shares is a well-known option, creditors may also be interested in other assets, such as the business goodwill or operating licences on which the business depends. However, the nature...Entering intellectual property rights: patents, trademarks and copyrights
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesPursuing the recovery of a debt often involves searching for seizable assets in the debtor's estate. While property assets and bank accounts spring to mind, intellectual property rights can also be of considerable value. Trademarks, patents and copyrights are just some of the...Seizure of shares and securities: understanding the stages of enforcement
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesThe seizure of company shares or securities is a particularly effective means of enforcement for creditors seeking to recover their debt. By directly targeting the assets held by the debtor in a company, this procedure makes it possible to freeze and then sell valuable assets. However, its...Seizure of partners' rights and securities: complex cases and limits on seizability
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesInitiating debt collection proceedings often involves seizing the debtor's assets. In addition to tangible assets, a person's or company's assets often include intangible rights, which can be of considerable value. The seizure of these assets, in particular shareholder rights and securities, can be an effective means of...Entering customer files: conditions, procedure and impact of the RGPD
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesIn today's economic landscape, a company's intangible assets represent a major part of its value. Among them, the customer file represents much more than a simple list of contacts: it is a strategic tool, the fruit of investment and commercial effort. When a company is in debt, its creditors may legitimately seek to...Capturing technical knowledge: trade secrets, topographies and plant varieties
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesWhen a company is in debt, its creditors legitimately seek to recover their funds by seizing its assets. The collective imagination immediately thinks of tangible assets such as vehicles, stock or property. However, a company's true value often lies in its intangible assets. Although these assets are not tangible, they can make the difference between...Seizure of designs: procedure and issues
Law of guarantees, sureties and enforcement measures, Seizure of partnership rights and securitiesA design is much more than just an aesthetic creation. For a company, it is a strategic asset, part of its identity and a source of economic value. Like any asset, however, it can be the subject of enforcement action by a creditor seeking to recover...The subtleties of the seizure of movable tangible property: law, exceptions and disputes
Law of guarantees, securities and enforcement measures, Seizure of assetsThe seizure of tangible movable property is a procedure that enables a creditor to secure its claim by making the debtor's movable property unavailable. It is a preventive mechanism, a sort of asset "freeze", which anticipates any legal action or the obtaining of a writ of execution. And much more...Judicial conservatory mortgage: procedure, publicity and legal effects
Law of guarantees, security interests and enforcement measures, Judicial mortgageWhen a creditor has a claim that appears to be justified but has not yet been validated by a writ of execution, the wait can be a source of anxiety. The risk that the debtor will organise his insolvency by selling his property is a legitimate concern. Faced with this situation, the judicial conservatory mortgage proves to be a...Protection of the debtor's privacy in seizure proceedings: rights, limits and guarantees
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawWhen a creditor seeks to recover a sum of money, seizure procedures can quickly become a source of anxiety for the debtor. The prospect of having a bailiff intervene in their personal sphere, or even in their home, raises legitimate questions about the protection of their privacy. If...Optimising the sale of foreclosed assets: out-of-court procedures to help debtors
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawAn attachment procedure is often a dreaded ordeal, perceived as a total loss of control over one's assets. However, debtors are not helpless, and the law provides them with mechanisms to regain the initiative and protect their interests. Far from the image of a systematic public auction, the...Personal over-indebtedness and personal recovery: a second chance for debtors
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawWhen individuals find themselves unable to meet their financial commitments, the law provides for a series of mechanisms designed to offer them a way out and to organise the resolution of their situation. Over-indebtedness is not an inevitability, but a legal situation, the treatment of which aims to...Unseizable income and assets: understanding the limits of creditors' action against debtors' assets
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawThe principle is simple: a creditor in possession of a writ of execution may seize the debtor's assets to obtain payment of the debt. However, this prerogative is not absolute. The legislator has established a delicate balance between the creditor's legitimate right to recovery and the need to preserve the debtor's...Inalienability of property: beyond the principal residence, which assets are protected by law?
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawThe fundamental principle governing debts in French law is the general right of lien of creditors. Anchored in Articles 2284 and 2285 of the Civil Code, this authorises a creditor to seize the debtor's assets to obtain payment owed to him. This power is...Protection of debtors in enforcement proceedings: rights, limits and remedies
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawWhen a creditor seeks to recover a debt, he may resort to compulsory enforcement procedures, which are often perceived as a direct threat to the debtor's assets. However, French law has built in a series of safeguards to maintain a balance and prevent debt collection from leading to a situation of...Seizure of aircraft: procedure, conditions and recent developments
Guarantees, securities and enforcement lawSeizing an aircraft is a formidable procedure for a creditor and devastating for a debtor. Because of the considerable economic value of these assets and their great mobility, their forced immobilisation is a powerful lever in debt recovery. However, this measure is governed by a specific...Seizure of boats: procedure, conditions and special features
Law of guarantees, securities and enforcement measures, Seizure of shipsThe seizure of a boat, although less publicised than that of ships, is subject to an equally complex legal regime, a source of many questions for creditors and owners. Contrary to popular belief, the applicable rules are not simply a variation on those of maritime law. The...Judicial distribution of the sale price in a property seizure: operation and remedies
Law of guarantees, securities and enforcement measures, Seizure of propertyForeclosure is a complex procedure that culminates in the sale of the property. However, the sale is not the end of the process. There is then an equally decisive stage: the distribution of the price obtained among the various creditors. This phase, the sixth and final stage in the...Amicable distribution of the sale price during a property seizure: procedures and interests
Law of guarantees, securities and enforcement measures, Seizure of propertyThe distribution of the sale price of a seized property is the culmination of the seizure procedure. This is a delicate and decisive stage, both for the debtor, who sees his assets realised, and for the creditors, who are waiting to be paid. For non-experts, this phase may seem like a daunting...
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