By Raphaël MORENON
30 March 2025
The French State, a major player in legal matters, is regularly involved in litigation. For a thorough understanding of the origin and essential duties of the State's legal representative, it is crucial to know who can represent it in court. The answer is not left to chance: the State Judicial Agent (AJE) has a legal monopoly on representation, established by Article 38 of the Law of 3 April 1955. This specific legal mechanism deserves to be understood by both practitioners and litigants involved in a dispute with the State. An exclusive monopoly on representation The legal mandate gives the AJE an exclusive monopoly to represent the State before the courts. Case law has clearly established this: «the State could not, in proceedings seeking to declare it liable for causes unrelated to taxation and property, be legally represented by another civil servant...
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