France: Bill on Internal Investigations Registered with French Parliament on 9 December 2025
There are currently no statutory rules which regulate how companies carry out internal investigations except when such investigation is requested by a member of the Works Council. This bill seeks to set out employees’ rights and obligations, namely, when the company is being investigated by the French authorities.
Internal investigations are a growing trend in France due to the updating of whistleblowing legislation in 2022 as well as recent guidance from the French Defender of Rights (Défenseur des Droits) in February 2025 and growing caselaw.
Currently, only the French Labour Code contains rules on internal investigations: articles L2312-59 and L2312-60, which provide that an internal investigation must be initiated if a member of the Works Council considers that one or several employees are in grave and imminent danger or their fundamental rights are being impacted. In this case, the Labour Code provides that the Works Council member and the employer must run a joint internal investigation. It does not, however, expressly set out how such investigation should be organised.
The new bill aims to include in the French Labour Code a definition of internal investigations and make it a formal process, which aims to verify if alleged facts or suspicions of violations of the law or the company’s internal rules are substantiated. It also provides that all evidence must be considered, whether incriminating or exonerating the individuals accused, while respecting the persons’ rights and using proportional measures.
Further rules are envisaged to protect staff accused when the internal investigation occurs while the company is also being investigated by the French authorities. Such internal investigations, when carried out by a lawyer, would be subject to legal privilege.
There is currently no visibility on when the bill could be examined by the French Parliament.
Key Action Points for Human Resources and In-House Counsel
Check that you have a formal procedure in place on carrying out internal investigations.
