The 5 news of the week – 17 JUNE 2024

Unfair competition
The interpretation of Article 1240 of the Civil Code in the case law, which only allows the amount of damages owed to the victim of acts of unfair or parasitic competition to be assessed by taking into consideration the undue advantage granted by the perpetrator, in order to determine the extent of the harm caused by such acts, in no way undermines the principle of liability, but on the contrary ensures compensation, by the perpetrator of acts of unfair or parasitic competition, for the harmful consequences of his wrongful acts.
Cass. com., 5 juin 2024, n° 23-22.122

Sudden termination of an established commercial relationship
A provision attributing jurisdiction to the courts of England, in an online mediation services agreement, drafted in clear, precise terms, in visible characters and included in the main body of the contract, is enforceable against the co-contractor even if it was not included in the initial agreement, since the creation of an account requires acceptance of the general terms and conditions, which stipulate that the co-contractor is deemed to accept the terms of the agreement and any updates thereto, through continued use of the services made available.
CA Paris, 5 June 2024, No 21/18389

Fine
In the event of the annulment or reduction with ex tunc effect by an EU court, of a fine imposed by the Commission for infringement of the competition rules, the latter is required to repay all or part of the amount of the fine paid provisionally, together with interest for the period from the date of provisional payment to the date of its repayment, in order to compensate the undertaking in question for the unavailability to it of the sums unduly collected.
CJEU, Case C-221/22 P Commission v Deutsche Telekom AG , Judgment of 11 June 2024,

Commercial Agent
The mere fact of signing a contract with a real estate agency operating in the geographical area prohibited by the non-compete clause constitutes a breach of that clause, even if the sales agent has not negotiated any sales on its behalf or received any remuneration from it.
CA Pau, 28 May 2024, No 22/01882

Liability for defective products
The liability of the manufacturer of an implant cannot be incurred on the basis of product liability when the victim is merely insisting that, in the light of national and worldwide statistics, it raises more difficulties than others, without providing proof of an intrinsic defect in this product, related to the fact that it has migrated into his pulmonary tract.
CA Douai, 6 June 2024, No 23/01990