Find Lawyers in France for Labor and Employment Law
Practice Area Overview
Labour lawyers assist their clients in managing both individual labour relations (employee – employer) and collective labour relations (unions/staff representative bodies – company). They are involved in the drafting of employment contracts, especially with regards to particular clauses governing confidentiality, intellectual property, and non-compete obligations, along with clauses providing for compensation or benefits in kind. They also help develop the collective status of employees through the company’s rules of procedure, ethical charters, and through determining the company’s or group’s policy. They accompany their clients in carrying out both optional and mandatory collective negotiation and in implementing the resulting collective bargaining agreements (the organisation of working time, professional equality, etc).
Labour lawyers inform and advise their clients on their social obligations with regard to staff management: recruitment, management of holidays and absences, the signing of fixed-term contracts, the termination of the employment contract, the implementation of staff representative bodies, etc. Further, they assist companies in weighing the social consequences of business transfers, outsourcing, mergers or acquisitions, in particular through undertaking social audits. In so doing, they work in close partnership with both in-house counsel and human resources departments.
In terms of legal advice, the assistance afforded to clients is diverse and covers the day-to-day management of legal issues (the implementation of the employment contract, the modification of working conditions, relations with staff representatives and the arrangements in place to allow staff representatives time to carry out their mandates) through to complex matters (company restructurings, business transfers, etc). The profession also includes an international dimension, in that multinational groups implement common policies which must be considered in light of the national law applicable to their overseas subsidiaries. In addition, the development of these subsidiaries often requires the international mobility of employees. In terms of litigation, labour lawyers seek to prevent disputes and, where necessary, ensure the defence of their clients before the civil, social, criminal, and administrative courts.
Les avocats spécialisés en droit social assistent leurs clients dans la gestion des relations individuelles (salarié - employeur) et collectives de travail (syndicats/instances de représentation du personnel - entreprise). Ils participent à la rédaction des contrats de travail notamment pour les clauses particulières telles que les clauses de confidentialité, clauses de propriété intellectuelle, clause de non-concurrence ou des clauses relatives à la rémunération et divers avantages en nature... Ils aident également à élaborer le statut collectif de l’entreprise comprenant le règlement intérieur, les chartes éthiques ou la politique d’entreprise ou de groupe…. Ils accompagnent leurs clients dans la conduite des négociations collectives facultatives et obligatoires ainsi que dans la mise en place des accords collectifs en résultant (organisation du temps de travail, égalité professionnelle…).
Les avocats spécialisés en droit social informent et conseillent leurs clients relativement à leurs obligations sociales en matière de gestion de leurs effectifs : recrutement, gestion des congés et absences, conclusion de contrats à durée déterminée, rupture du contrat de travail, mise en place des instances de représentation du personnel… Par ailleurs, ils aident les entreprises à mesurer les conséquences sociales des opérations de cessions, externalisations, acquisitions, fusions notamment par la conduite d’audits sociaux. Ils deviennent ainsi de véritables partenaires des directions juridiques et des directions des ressources humaines.
En matière de conseil, l’assistance apportée à leurs clients est variée et couvre la gestion quotidienne de leurs problématiques juridiques (exécution du contrat de travail et modification des conditions de travail, relations avec les représentants du personnel et gestion des heures de délégation…) jusqu’aux dossiers d’envergure (restructuration d’entreprise, transfert d’entreprise...) Le métier revêt également une dimension internationale dans la mesure où les grands groupes mondiaux mettent en place des politiques communes qui nécessitent une articulation avec le droit national applicable à leurs filiales implantées à l’étranger. Le développement de ces filiales requiert également bien souvent l’emploi de la mobilité internationale des salariés. En contentieux, les avocats spécialisés en droit social préviennent les risques de litiges et assurent la défense de leurs clients devant l’ensemble des juridictions civiles, sociales, pénales, administratives.
Blandine Allix advises employers on labour-law issues, essentially on collective and individual disputes, including both labour law as such, and its criminal law aspects. She develops an expertise with the labour law issues that have arisen through new technologies.Blandine Allix holds a Masters in Law and a post-graduate degree in HR Management (DESS : Ingénierie des Ressources Humaines) from the Université Paris V. From 1999 to 2002 she was with Salans as an associate in its l...
Florence Bacquet has specialised in advising international companies on collective labour-law issues: staff representative bodies, collective status, group disputes and litigation with major financial implications. She also advises on restructuring and transfer of undertakings. A member of the American Bar Association, Florence, who is bilingual, graduated from the École des hautes études commerciales de Paris (HEC); she holds two Masters degrees (business & tax law, labour ...
Delphine BRETAGNOLLE is a partner lawyer in the LYON office’s Employment – Social Security Law Department. Alongside standard services in labour law (in both advisory work and litigation), she has developed particular expertise in : advisory work and litigation during collective insolvency proceedings, mergers and acquisitions, company restructurings and reorganizations (company transfers, geographic and/or professional mobility plans, standardizing articles of association, collec...
Pierre-Jacques Castanet is the managing partner of In Extenso Avocats Ile de France, a firm that provides advice in the fields of labor and employment and tax law. He runs the firm’s labor and employment law department with his partner, Stanislas Dublineau. He specialises in employment and social welfare law. Before joining In Extenso Avocats, Pierre-Jacques was a partner at IDAvocats and Idrac & Associés. With more than 30 years’ experience at the Paris Bar, Pierre-Jac...
Aurélie Cormier Le Goff primarily handles cases related to collective relations, both in advisory and litigation roles, particularly in the areas of collective bargaining and agreements, as well as issues related to working hours, remuneration, employee savings, and business transfers. She assists public enterprises, companies within major French groups, and employer professional federations. She has developed particular expertise with public sector companies employing private law empl...
Jeannie Credoz-Rosier was made partner in January 2013. As a labour law specialist, she has developed particular expertise (advice and litigation) on various questions concerning relationships with staff representative bodies and their elections and discrimination/equal treatment issues. She also regularly advises companies on their restructuring operations. She co-heads Collective negotiation & working time and Ethics & Diversity practices. A graduate of the Institut d’Etudes P...
Déborah David has developed an expertise in both consultancy and litigation relating to business restructuring, particularly in an international context: employment protection plans in the context of reorganisation from a solvent position or as part of the restructuring or disposal of businesses in collective proceedings, site closures, outsourcing and operations involving the transfer of an activity at national or transnational level. Déborah also assists foreign businesses in ...
Stanislas Dublineau, a former lecturer at Paris II Panthéon-Assas University, holds a PhD in private law. A lawyer since 2004, he focuses exclusively on labor and employment law and advises companies of all sizes as well as employer organisations and professional bodies. For a number of years, he has been developing his expertise in the field of corporate restructuring. Stanislas Dublineau has also been President of the Employment Law Committee of the ACE (French association of busines...
Stéphanie Dumas was made partner in January 2011. She advises companies on all their matters pertaining to mergers & acquisitions, restructurings, business transfers and collective litigation. She co-heads 2 practices of the firm: Restructuring and Management practices. Stéphanie was recognised as 'Best Lawyer 2018 in Employment Law" by Best Lawyers. She graduated from the École des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC), and also holds a Master’s Degree in Business L...
Nabila El Aougri advises companies on employment law and represents them in the event of litigation. She specializes in the domain of ethics and the promotion of diversity, industrial relations and collective bargaining. She was a member of the employment law department at Gide Loyrette Nouel (2000 – 2008) and holds Masters in Labour Law (Paris I) and General Private Law (Paris II).
His expertise in labor & employment law matters, social security law and immigration is grounded on an experience of more than thirty years in the service of French and foreign groups and extends to all their needs, counselling them in restructuring transactions, business transfers and M&A deals, as well as with respect to questions on individual and collective work relationships, salary savings schemes, social security coverage and immigration in France and abroad. Thierry has also d...
Joël Grangé is name partner at Flichy Grangé Avocats, a leading employment law firm in France with over 80 labour law specialists. Joël Grangé advises and assists French and international clients on all French employment issues. He specialises in advising on mergers and restructuring operations, collective redundancies, transfers of undertakings and collective disputes. He also advises on employee savings schemes, individual relations, working hours, executive m...
Barbara Hart is a partner at Sesame Avocats. Barbara advises her clients, French and foreign companies, in the development of their social strategy particularly during operations involving significant stakes for the company, such as restructuring, social plans, L&E aspects of mergers and acquisitions involving staff transfers. Barbara has developed a solid expertise in health and safety at work, and advises her clients on their regulatory obligations in terms of occupational risk preventi...
Juliana Kovac advises various clients in all areas of labour and Social Security law and she notably assists in connection to the issues arising through workforce savings plans (optional- and mandatory profit-sharing plans, company savings plans, stock subscription- and purchase-options, free share distribution, etc.). The listed and non listed companies turn to Juliana for legal advice on the occasion of Urssaf audits and often Juliana advises public companies in matters involving both civil...
Olivier Kress is a partner at Flichy Grangé Avocats, a top-tier employment and labour law firm in France with over 70 labour law specialists and is repeatedly recognised as one of France’s leading lawyers in this area. For more than twenty years, Olivier has provided assistance to national and international clients on all aspects of employment and labour law. He is sought out by clients for his knowledge of acquisition operations, outsourcing, carve-out, transfer of undertakings,...
Pascale Lagesse is a Partner and head of Bredin Prat’s Employment Law practice. She has over 20 years of experience advising international corporate clients. Her practice focuses on the employment issues arising out of mergers & acquisitions and corporate downsizings and restructurings. Pascale has particular expertise with employee representation issues, including the negotiation of collective agreements. She counsels leading public and private companies on executive severance pack...
Nicolas Mancret assists his clients in the development and implementation of their social policy. Over the course of his career, he has developed expertise in both advisory and litigation matters relating to corporate restructuring, individual and collective labor relations and the implementation of the labor policy of major French and foreign companies operating in France.
Charlotte Michaud provides guidance and advice to human resources and legal departments of both French and international companies and groups on all aspects of employment law. This includes both their day-to-day management of labor relations with employee representative bodies, and during complex operations and reorganizations. She handles cases related to company transfers and collective layoffs, as well as issues related to working hours, compensation, and mobility. She also assists compani...
Philippe PACOTTE is co-head of the Paris office’s Employment – Social Security Law Department. He has gained solid experience in : restructuring operations and international projects, involving both the engineering unique to the area and awareness of the necessary synergies with the Corporate Law – Mergers and Acquisitions and Tax Law Departments : registered office transfers, mergers, LBOs, reorganization of activities, due diligence relating to acquisition or sale audits, ...
Partner Cyprien Pialoux advises companies on daily management of industrial relations. He also represents companies and their management teams before civil and criminal courts. He focuses on individual and collective litigation related to restructuring operations, discrimination, professional inequality or disputes arising with employee representative bodies.Cyprien holds a master’s certificate in business law from Paris XI University (2000) and a master’s degree in business law f...
Emmanuel Raynaud is an acknowledged specialist in criminal law and procedure, and more particularly, in the labour-law aspects of criminal law. In 2001, he was elected Secrétaire de la Conférence du Stage. He advises and represents clients in the Criminal Courts throughout the proceedings. Maître Raynaud participates in conducting courses and audits on criminal risks; at the Paris Bar’s School he has been teaching a course entitled “Argument: its theoretical an...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.