By Raphaël MORENON
25 March 2025
Act 2011-850 of 20 July 2011 radically changed the rules governing auctions of new goods in France. Previously severely restricted, these sales are now authorised subject to conditions. This change marks the end of a centuries-old principle enshrined in the law of 25 June 1841, which prohibited «making public auctions a customary procedure in the exercise of one's trade». The legal framework for these sales is governed by precise rules. Failure to comply can have serious consequences for both the seller and the auctioneer. 1. The liberalisation of sales of new goods Article L.321-1 of the French Commercial Code now states that «voluntary sales of furniture by public auction may involve new or second-hand goods». This opening up is accompanied by a legal definition of goods considered as «second-hand»: those which «at any stage of production or distribution, are...
EN 
FR