The French Autorité de la concurrence is initiating a public consultation to prepare a new opinion on the freedom of establishment of lawyers at the French Administrative Supreme Court and the French Supreme Court. This includes revising recommendations on the creation of offices, with stakeholders invited to participate by answering an online questionnaire before October 19, 2024.

The law mandates periodic reviews of recommendations on office creation for these lawyers, with the Autorité tasked to make public recommendations at least every two years. The last opinion was published in April 2023, recommending an increase in the number of offices. However, due to a lack of candidates, only one new office was created since then.

The public consultation aims to inform new recommendations for 2025-2027, open to all interested parties. The Autorité is particularly encouraging associates of lawyers at the Courts and students at a specialist training institute to participate. Stakeholders are invited to provide feedback on various issues, including feedback from newly established lawyers, appointment procedures, training access, and office attractiveness.