OUR EXPERTISES

E-COMMERCE

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

Marketing

  • Compliance with marketing campaigns with consumer protection regulation (pricing, canvassing, fairness of practices, etc.)
  • Legal assistance in the preparation of competitions and sweepstakes (drafting of conditions, conformity of materials)
  • Legality of advertising for certain products subject to specific regulation (tobacco, alcohol, medical products, etc.)
  • Liaising with agencies and advertisers
  • Liaising with subcontractors (designers, producers, directors, models, actors)
Web sites – on-line sales – mobile applications

  • Assistance in negotiating and drafting agreements with technical service providers (web masters, internet and web hosting service providers, outsourcing, etc.) and content suppliers
  • Drafting of legal notices
  • Compliance with LCEN law (‘to support confidence in the digital economy’)
  • Drafting of general conditions of sale and general conditions of use for web sites
  • Implementation of privacy policies
  • Compliance with the Data Protection Act (processing of personal data, informing data owners, right of access, rectification and deletion, CNIL filings, designation of an attorney as Data Protection Officer, cookie processing, sensitive data, obtaining consent – opt-in/opt-out)

Payment fraud

AVENS assists and represents banking and e-commerce clients in handling payment fraud litigation in civil and criminal courts:

  • counterfeit and stolen cheques
  • Banking data theft
  • Computer piracy (via viruses or WiFi)
  • Fraudulent email
  • payment order fraud (‘Fake president fraud’, for example)

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

Copyright

  • Definition of a protection strategy
  • Protection criteria assessment
  • Rights searches
  • Negotiation and drafting of agreements (contracts for publishing, audiovisual and phonographic productions)
  • Application of the Lang Law
  • Infringement actions
  • Implementation of provisional and urgent measures (seizures for counterfeiting, reports, judicial expertise)
  • Enforcement
  • Legal training

Trademark law

  • Definition of a protection strategy
  • Validity studies
  • Rights searches
  • Trademark filing in France, the European Union and worldwide
  • Handling of particularities of collective marks
  • Negotiation and drafting of transfer and licence agreements
  • Infringement actions
  • Implementation of provisional and urgent measures (seizures for counterfeiting, reports, judicial expertise)
  • Enforcement
  • Legal training
Domain names

  • Definition of a domain name protection strategy
  • Rights searches
  • Filing of a domain name
  • Infringement actions
  • Implementation of provisional and urgent measures (seizures for counterfeiting, reports, judicial expertise)
  • Enforcement
  • UDRP procedures (Uniform domain name dispute resolution policy)

 

Reputation management

  • Notice and take-down of content that is illegal, fraudulent, or prejudicial to image or reputation on the internet

 
Image rights

  • Notices and litigation for the unauthorized use of a real person’s image

Software

  • Development contracts
  • Fraud
  • Licensing and transfers

Patents

  • Protection strategy
  • Litigation

BRANDS – DOMAIN NAMES

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

Trademark law

  • Definition of a protection strategy
  • Validity studies
  • Rights searches
  • Trademark filing in France, the European Union and worldwide
  • Handling of particularities of collective marks
  • Negotiation and drafting of transfer and licence agreements
  • Infringement actions
  • Implementation of provisional and urgent measures (seizures for counterfeiting, reports, judicial expertise)
  • Enforcement
  • Legal training

Domain names

  • Definition of a domain name protection strategy
  • Rights searches
  • Filing of a domain name
  • Infringement actions
  • Implementation of provisional and urgent measures (seizures for counterfeiting, reports, judicial expertise)
  • Enforcement
  • UDRP procedures (Uniform domain name dispute resolution policy)

PRESS – MEDIA – COMMUNICATION

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

Printed press

  • Defamation, insults on private individuals or public figures; insults of a racial, ethnic, religious or sexist nature
  • Violation of the presumption of innocence
  • Invasion of privacy, infringement of image rights
  • Right of reply
  • Smear campaigns
  • Journalist rights (independence, protection of sources, etc.)

Media

  • Distribution rights
  • Copyright
  • Contracts
  • CSA relations

Communication

  • Communication campaigns
  • Standard contracts
  • Editorial content

CYBER LAW

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

Illegal content

  • Deletion of social media, blog or web site content that is illegal, infringes upon privacy or damages reputation (trademark infringement, illegal reproductions of a copyright work)
Reputation management

  • Reputation protection for people and legal entities
  • Notices and judicial proceedings to obtain the withdrawal of illegal or defamatory content

 

Privacy

  • Deletion of social media or web site or blog content which infringes upon privacy

 

Cybercrime

  • Banking data theft
  • Hacking
  • Fraudulent email
  • payment order fraud (‘Fake president fraud’, for example)
  • counterfeit and stolen cheques

HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

INDIVIDUAL LABOUR RELATIONS

Employee recruitment:

Drafting of employment contracts: choice of type of contract, with particular attention to the drafting of key clauses in employment contracts: working time, remuneration, mobility, non-compete clauses.

Drafting of employment contracts in specific fields: journalists, freelances, real estate negotiators, athletes (football/rugby players, etc.)
Recommendations for delegations of authority

Implementation of expatriation and secondment solutions, if necessary in cooperation with partners in our Concerto network

During employment

Amendments to employment contract to reflect career progress or changes to the law or collective agreements

Processing of individual workplace health issues (incapacity, extended illness, workplace accidents, harassment, unpleasant working conditions)

In cases of potential conflict, definition of a pre-litigation strategy: pre-emption or heading-off of conflicts, protection of employer interests if the conflict cannot be avoided (drafting of correspondence and implementation of disciplinary measures)

Termination of employment

Implementation of individual termination proce¬dures, term¬ination by negotiation procedures, and, if applicable, settlement agreements: risk assessments, decision support, legal safeguarding of decisions, representation before labour tribunals in the event of litigation (labour tribunals, labour divisions of the appeals courts and Supreme Court, the Social Security Affairs Court and the Journalists’ Arbitration Commission.

COLLECTIVE LABOUR RELATIONS

Work organisation and labour relations

  • Auditing of individual and collective statuses (company-level and industry-level)
  • Auditing of staff representation and, if necessary, the implementation of employee representation bodies
  • Assistance in oversight of employee representation bodies in information/consulting procedures
  • Auditing and recommendations for workplace organisation: hygiene, safety, gender parity, teleworking
  • Auditing and recommendations for work hours: working time, part-time hours, standby functions, night work, Sunday work, continuous work
  • Assistance in collective bargaining for work organisation, particularly where work hours are concerned
  • Implementation of employee evaluation tools
  • Implementation of a code of conduct, code of ethics, IT charters, whistle blowing policies
  • Wage policies and company savings plans (wages, profit-sharing and savings plans, stock option plans (BSPCE), restricted stocks)
  • Prevention of psycho-social risks and discrimination
  • Management of issues related to subcontracting, secondment and temporary hiring (illegal subcontracting or supply of labour, co-employment)
Business restructuring

  • Assistance in managing labour relations during the implementation of new organisation procedures during decline phases: staff reduction, outsourcing, sales of branches; implementation of collective economic redundancy plans
  • Support of company growth during labour-sensitive operations: mergers, acquisitions, acquisition of new business branches
  • Social audits prior to these operations
  • Management of restructuring effects on individual and collective relations (challenges to collective agreements, impacts on employee representative bodies, negotiation of substitute agreements)

CORPORATE – BUSINESS ACTIVITIES

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

CORPORATE

CREATION OF A COMPANY

  • Constitution of companies and other entities: choice of structure, drafting of statutes, management and oversight of constitution formalities
  • Consulting on the status of directors: fiscal and social status, combined employment and corporate office
  • Implementation of agreements between shareholders and statutory/extra-statutory agents: negotiation and drafting of shareholder agreements, pre-emption, non-dilution, inalienability, tag-along rights, forced selling, agreements to sell, liquidity, change in majority, governance, etc.)
  • Balance sheet assessment and consulting in individual tax matters for the director

LIFE OF THE COMPANY/ RESTRUCTURING

Assistance with the company’s every-day legal matters

  • Preparation and drafting of invitations and related documentation for annual general meetings, meetings of the executive board, management board, supervisory board or any other executive or supervisory entity for day-to-day business: approval of accounts and regulated agreements, management of company mandates;
  • Statutory changes, corporate governance oversight
  • Management and oversight of legal formalities

Special transactions, restructuring, mergers and acquisitions

  • Capital increases, fundraising, re-capitalisations
  • Share offerings to directors, employees or third parties (securities allowing access to share capital, stock options, restricted stocks, BSPCE, share purchase warrants, etc.);
  • Company restructuring
  • Capital reductions
  • Creation of subsidiaries and holdings:
  • Leveraged buy-outs, leveraged management buy-outs, etc.
  • Full transfers of assets;
  • Merger operations (drafting of treaty, oversight of merger proceedings and disclosure formalities, naming of asset transfer and merger auditors, client assistance in dealings with asset transfer auditors in defining the merger exchange ratio)
  • Transfer, acquisition or contribution of assets;
  • Transfer or acquisition of subsidiaries: negotiation and drafting of deeds, warranty agreements, and shareholder agreements in cases of partial acquisition
  • Partial transfer of assets;
  • Management of social repercussions
  • Management of fiscal repercussions.

DISPOSAL OF A COMPANY

  • Block sales, overall transfers;
  • Negotiation and drafting of warranty agreements;
  • Negotiation and drafting of shareholder agreements in the event of partial disposal;
  • Management of social repercussions;
  • Management of fiscal repercussions;
  • Asset disposal;
BUSINESS ACTIVITIES

Commercial leases

  • Help in negotiating key clauses (price, entrance fees, key money, price indexation, guarantees, authorised activities, derogations, duration of lease, etc.)
  • Drafting of commercial lease agreement
  • Drafting of notices or requests for renewal
  • Help in renewing commercial leases (approvals, rejections, eviction indemnities)
  • Representation in litigation (renewal prices, removing ceilings, expertise, disturbance of peaceful possession, peaceful possession guarantees, etc.)

 

Asset purchase/disposal, management leases

AVENS assists its clients throughout the process of purchasing or disposing of assets and in the implementation of management leases:

  • Auditing material elements (equipment, furniture, tools, merchandise, inventory, etc.) and immaterial elements (clientele, logo, trade name, leasehold rights, employment contracts, insurance and publishing contracts, logo, literary, artistic and industrial property rights, official authorisations, domain names, etc.)
  • Help in informing employees beforehand,
  • Negotiation and drafting of the deed of sale,
  • Organising meeting to sign,
  • Handling of administrative formalities (BODACC publication, tax returns, and, where required, prior declarations for municipal authorities)
  • Management leases
  • Negotiation and drafting of management lease agreements
  • Help in negotiating key clauses in the management lease agreement (authorised activities, leasing income, non-compete clause, lessee costs, etc.)
  • Help in implementing a management lease as a method of divestiture (inclusion of a preliminary agreement)
  • Representation (as plaintiff or defendant) in management lease litigation (leasing income claims, compliance with contract terms, disturbance of peaceful possession, etc.)

CONTRACTS – COMMERCIAL LITIGATION

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

CONTRACTS

Avens assists clients with the negotiation, drafting and oversight of contracts related to their commercial activities:

  • trade service agreements, framework agreements, general conditions of sale (or purchase), special conditions of sale (or purchase)
  • Sample standard agreements and clauses
  • Specific e-commerce agreements; legal design and architecture of showcase or commercial sites
  • B to B and B to C agreements
  • agreements and dealings with commercial service providers (distributors, PR agencies, materials, etc.)
  • Distribution agreements, selective and exclusive distribution agreements, franchise agreements, creation of distribution and franchise networks
  • License agreements, commercial partnership agreements
  • Contracts with sales reps, field reps, commission-based reps and brokers
  • Central purchasing adhesion agreements
  • Purchasing and maintenance contracts
  • Transportation of goods contracts
COMMERCIAL LITIGATION

Contractual liability

  • Actions to obtain urgent or provisional measures
  • Actions for the appointment of an expert
  • Actions for payment via appeal or full proceedings
  • Actions for enforcement (with or without penalty payments)
  • Actions to claim damages
  • Implementation of limitation clauses
  • Negotiation of settlements and drafting of transactions

Sudden termination of business relations

  • Assessment of litigation risk following termination of established business relations (fault on the part of a cocontractor, duration of business relationship, assessment of duration of contractual notice compared to duration applied by the courts, etc.)
  • Representation (as plaintiff or defendant) in liability claims regarding established business relations.

Unfair competition

  • Assessment of conduct which may constitute unfair competition (smear campaigns, confusion on the part of the public, internal disorganisation, revealing business secrets, espionage, etc.
  • Representation (as plaintiff or defendant) in liability claims regarding unfair competition.

Debt collection

  • Amicable and pre-litigation proceedings
  • Negotiation and drafting of transfer and licence agreements
  • Representation in claims for payment via appeal or full proceedings

Insolvency proceedings

  • Actions to prevent difficulties, amicable settlement
  • Actions in cases of receivership
  • Assistance to companies in difficulty
  • Creditor protection (monitoring, claims, declaration of claims)

ECONOMIC LAW – PUBLIC PROCUREMENT

AVENS work focuses on the following areas:

ECONOMIC LAW

Competition

  • Counsel and representation of companies in cases of breaches of antitrust law
  • Assistance and representation in national proceedings before competition authorities and appeals
  • Assistance in the opening of a proceeding
  • Assistance in drafting agreements compliant with competition law
  • Assistance in control of concentrations and notifications
  • Assessment of agreements, contracts and practices of state-owned companies with respect to state aid regulations
  • Representation of companies who are victims of cartels by suppliers or competitors

European trade

  • Assessment of national regulation compliance with Community regulation
  • Assistance and representation in Community proceedings
  • Actions before the European Court of Justice regarding the free movement of goods and services
  • Actions in cases of civil liability (harm to competitors)
Distribution

  • Distribution agreements and general conditions of sale
  • Selective and exclusive distribution agreements
  • Franchise agreements
  • Implementation of distribution networks
  • Licensing and commercial partnership agreements
  • Sales reps, field reps, commission-based reps and brokers
  • Central purchasing

 

Corporate criminal law

AVENS assists and represents companies in criminal law in the courts as the accused or plaintiff in cases of:

  • economic offences (involving business practices, pricing, false advertising),
  • misappropriation of assets, publication of false accounts,
  • favouritism in tendering, corruption,
  • tax and customs offences,
  • stock market offences (insider training, price manipulation),
  • laundering,
  • fraud and forgery,
  • computer fraud,
  • personal data breaches,
  • sanctions from regulatory bodies (CNIL, ARCEP, ombudsman, ACPR, AMF, etc.)

 

Compliance

  • Implementation of compliance programmes
  • Drafting of codes of best in-house practices
  • Personal liability of company head or compliance manager

Training

AVENS offers economic law training to legal and operational teams:

Examples of training courses offered:

  • Drafting of agreements in compliance with anti-trust law
  • Illegal business practices
  • Implementation of in-house policies for reporting and dealing with anti-competitive risk
  • Raising awareness among operational staff of business practices which may constitute an unlawful agreement
  • Criminal risk in corporate dealings and in international trade
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT

AVENS assists public buyers and economic agents operating in France or abroad in their procurement activities.

Advice

For public purchasers (contracting entities and authorities)

  • Analysis of investment plans in terms of the public procurement and public tender rules and proposals
  • Help with purchasing strategy
  • Help drawing up or legal oversight of tendering documents (advertising, tendering regulation, etc.)
  • Legal oversight of consultation documents (consultation rules, statements, terms and conditions, questionnaires, advertising, etc.)
  • Assistance throughout the consultation procedure
  • Drafting documents at the conclusion of the process (rejection letters, advertising, etc.)
  • Overseeing the implementation of tenders, contracts.
For the bidding company

  • Consulting on the definition of strategies to defend market share or move on new market opportunities
  • Helping drafting response documents
  • Putting together the application
  • Checking the legal admissibility of tenders

 

Litigation

Avens assists and represents clients before judicial and administrative courts:

  • Precontractual appeal to legal and administrative authorities
  • Contractual appeal
  • Defence or compensation claims
  • Defence or cancellation claims
  • Defence or claim at the magistrate’s court (nepotism, etc.)
  • Complaint lodged with the European Commission
  • Expertise, disputes with successful bidders or subcontractors
  • For the supplanted company or in the event of a rejected bid, or indeed in the absence of a consultation procedure, our lawyers assist legal teams and managers to devise the defence strategy and implement it.

Formation

AVENS, a registered training institution, offers training for operational, purchasing and legal teams working for contracting authorities and entities, as well as for tendering companies. For purchasing entities, our training courses raise awareness among teams of regulation and procedures, of legal risks and of failure and success factors. For tendering companies, we offer a generic training course on “how to win a tender” which we systematically adapt to the nature of the business, its sector and the types of tender.

Our firm offers purchasing authorities and entities a training course on changes to procurement law following Ordonnance No. 2015-899 of 23 July 2015 on public procurement and Décret No. 2016-360 of 25 March 2016 on public procurement.

Drafting of purchasing guides

Avens drafts purchasing guides for purchasing authorities and entities.

BANKING AND INSURANCE

AVENS assists and represents, in an advisory capacity and litigation, financial institutions, investment or retail banks, insurance companies and pension institutions.

Advice

  • Assisting investment banks with legal arrangements for their buy-outs.
  • Assistance in ensuring the legal safety of investors
  • Drafting of contracts, memos and records
  • Assistance in checking advertising, communication and marketing campaigns and marketing of banking, financial and insurance products
  • Support and assistance for our clients in their relations and negotiations with consumer associations, for example on bank charges
  • Audit of legal risks in the pension activity
  • Regular training on money laundering or criminal risk for lawyers, operational staff or management of companies in the sector
  • Assistance for the implementation of centralised processing of bank customer complaints,for example when a financial investment under-performs
  • Recommendations on how to approach a criminal trial (of a pensions firm or bank) depending on the type of offence and its seriousness.

Litigation

The firm is involved in defence and claim proceedings in banking and insurance law on a daily basis

  • Competition: Assistance and representation on state subsidies, abuse of dominant position and price-fixing at European Commission, Office of Fair Trading and Court hearings
  • Assistance and representation of institutions before independent public authorities: the AMF (Financial Market Authority), ACP (Bank and Insurance Regulator)
  • Corporate criminal law AVENS assists and represents companies in criminal law in the courts as the accused or plaintiff:
  • Civil: Assistance and representation in civil or commercial court for litigation involving:
  • Contractual liability and tortious liability
  • Failure to inform, advise or warn
  • Opt-out litigation
  • Manifestly excessive premiums
  • Implementation of safeguards

An expert team of lawyers mobilized
to advise and defend you.

LET’S MEET

01 40 67 87 67

13 rue la Fayette
75009 Paris