Tribunal correctionnel

In France, the correctional court is the criminal jurisdiction of first instance, and has jurisdiction to judge misdemeanors (délits).[1] In premier ressort,[lower-alpha 3] it judges matters that concern the commission of a criminal offence (infraction pénale) considered a délit, similar in severity to a misdemeanor.[2] In French law a misdemeanor is an offense punished by a prison sentence (peine d'emprisonnement) or by a fine of at least 3750 euros.[3] The law sets ten years as the maximum length of a prison sentence for a correctional infraction.[11][lower-alpha 4]

The correctional court has no jurisdiction over:

• offenses committed by minors (depending on their age and situation one of the juvenile courts would have jurisdiction, or the correctional courts for juveniles);
• a misdemeanor committed by the president of the Republic or a member of the government in the exercise of their functions (which would, respectivement, by tried by either the Haute Cour or the Cour de justice de la République, having jurisdiction in such a case).

Beyond these, the correctional court has jurisdiction to judge any other person who has reached the age of majority and has committed an offense. Its jurisdiction extends to co-authors and accomplices, assuming they too have also reached the age of majority.[12] So for example two thieves who acted in concert,[13] are co-authors of the theft, and any sponsor or silent partner is an accomplice by instigation.[14] The three would judged together by the same correctional court assuming they were all adults. If one were a minor, his situation could only be determined by a juvenile court. Any proceedings that concern him would be severed from the correctional court case and take place only within the framework of the juvenile courts. So in some cases a matter might be examined by two different courts.

Territorial Jurisdiction is defined with respect to:

• the location of the offense;
• the location of the defendant's residence;
• the place of arrest;
• the place of detention (even if detained for some other reason);
• the domicile or residence of the victim in cases of family abandonment.

At least one of these five locations must be located within the territorial limits of the tribunal de grande instance for the correctional court to have jurisdiction to judge the relevant infraction.

Since its latest reform, (réforme), the French judicial map includes 177 correctional courts whose assigned territory is that of the tribunal de grande instance of première instance.

If the correctional court finds that at least one of the jurisdictional criteria is absent, it must declare its lack of jurisdiction: this means that it must refuse to judge the matter. The jurisdictional exception is an absolute of the public order, which means that even if all parties had agreed to "choose" the tribunal correctionnel despite the rules of jurisdiction the court has an obligation to declare itself as not having jurisdiction.

If during a trial the correctional court finds that the facts it is judging as a misdemeanor (délit) in fact amount to a crime, it must declare that it does not have jurisdiction[15] and refer the matter to a juge d'instruction, whose partipation is mandatory in matters of French.[16]

Exceptions do exist to the exception of jurisdiction rule: a correctional court which would normally be without jurisdiction may in some cases need to judge a matter that arise in another jurisdiction. When a matter is judged outside of its territorial jurisdiction it is called dépaysement.[lower-alpha 5]

Finally, the law has come to recognize a practice of correctional courts, by fixing conditions where an act that can be characterized as a crime, rape for example can be judged by the correctional court as a lesser offense, such as sexual aggression rather than rape: this is called correctionnalisation.

In some cases, notably good administration of justice, the matter must be judged in another territorial jurisdiction than the one prescribed ratione loci rules.

For reasons of public safety, where there is a risk of serious disturbance of the peace if the trial were held in the competent jurisdiction, the criminal chamber of the court of cassation can refer the matter to a different correctional court. This request can only be made by the procureur général of the Cour de cassation, after he is informed of the difficulty.

In the interest of good administration of justice the criminal chamber of the court of cassation can also order the referral of a case to another court than the one that has territorial jurisdiction (ratione loci), either at the request of the public prosecutor of the Cour de cassation, or of the prosector-general of the Court of Appeal in the jurisdiction where the jurisdiction in question has its seat, either on his own initiative or at the request of the parties. For example, if:

• A magistrate,
• a lawyer,
• a public or ministerial official,
• a member of the gendarmerie nationale,
• an employee of the national police, customs or criminal justice administration
• or any other person who holds a position of public authority or who is charged with a mission of public service public,
• a person who is habitually, by his functions or his mission, in relation with the magistrates or officials of the tribunal correctionnel which has jurisdiction

the procureur of the Court of Appeal that has jurisdiction over the particular correctional court may, d'office, at the request of the procureur of the tribunal correctionnel and at the application of interested parties, transfer the proceeding to the tribunal de grande instance closest to the jurisdiction of the court of appeal, which will then have jurisdiction in the case, par dérogation aux dispositions de compétence territoriale.

Cases exist of material impossibility to hold the trial before the correctional court which normally has jurisdiction. A referral may be ordered by the criminal chamber if the court that would normally have jurisdiction cannot be legally assembled or if the course of justice finds itself otherwise interrupted. A request for referral may be presented, either by the procureur général before the Court of cassation, or by the established ministère public before the jurisdiction in question.

More often, especially in smaller jurisdictions, if the court normally having jurisdiction cannot be composed because the incompatibilities exist that the law has provided for, the first president of the cour d'appel can order the matter sent back to a neighboring jurisdiction situated in the scope of that court and designated by a special ordinance passed every year by the first president of the court of appeal indicating for each of its jurisdictions the jurisdiction to which procedures may be sent for this reason.

A lack of means in the cours d'assises in France allows some defendants to be judged by the correctional court[17] after committing a crime. This is termed correctionnalisation.[18] While illegal,[19] the arrangement often suits both parties;[20] the prosecutor or examining magistrate increases the likelihood of a shorter and simpler trial, while the defendant sees his crime downgraded to a simple misdemeanor-like délit.

• Raymond Depardon, 10e chambre, instants d'audience (documentary film)
• Jean-Luc Léon, Pacifique Justice (televised documentary on the Tribunal de première instance in Papeete)