Corporate executives may be held liable for endangering others in connection with all the decisions they are required to make—an offense whose scope is rather vague and is interpreted in varying ways by French courts.
Our role often involves advocating for the strict application of criminal law and ensuring that only those factors that could reasonably have been anticipated by our clients are taken into account. This task can prove all the more complex when our clients’ field of activity is itself highly technical in nature.
Examples:
- Defense of an executive under investigation, in particular for endangering the lives of others, for having helped maintain the company’s operations amid a civil war.
- Advising a major French company facing a major security risk identified at an industrial site that could hinder the continuation of its operations.
- Advising a major French company and one of its executives on charges of endangering the lives of others due to the alleged exposure of a former employee to allergenic and toxic substances.
- Represented a company and its executive who were named as defendants in a civil action filed directly by a civil party for endangering the lives of others in a case involving alleged exposure to asbestos fibers. Acquittal.