Banking Law

Whether it’s a loan, a fraud, or a seizure, banking law often enters our lives without warning. Through this blog, we help you better understand your rights when dealing with financial institutions, with clear, accessible articles grounded in the real disputes faced by individuals and professionals alike.

Insufficient Proof of Strong Authentication: BRED Ordered to Reimburse €5,500 (CA Paris, Pôle 5 ch. 6, 1 April 2026, No. RG 24/15478, Reversing TJ Paris, 3 July 2024, No. RG 23/08046)

Has your bank refused to reimburse a transfer you never made, citing “strong authentication” of the transaction? That is exactly the situation in which a ...

Unfair Terms and Limitation: Neither CJEU Judgments Nor Those of Supreme Courts Start the Clock Against the Borrower (CJEU, Ninth Chamber, 19 March 2026, Case C-679/24, ECLI:EU:C:2026:223)

Did you take out a mortgage in a foreign currency (Swiss francs, yen or any other currency) and have you now discovered that the clause ...

Disproportionate Guarantee: Disproportion Is Assessed Against the Amount of the Commitment, Not the Instalments (French Supreme Court, Commercial Chamber, 1 April 2026, No. 24-11.700)

You signed a guarantee (cautionnement) to secure a company’s loan, and that company has gone bankrupt. The bank is now turning to you to claim ...

Articles 2290 and 2302 of the Civil Code: Total Awards Against Non-Jointly Liable Guarantors Capped at the Principal Debt (Cass. com., 1 April 2026, No. 23-23.758, Published in the Bulletin)

When two people stand as guarantors (cautions) for the same borrower, can their bank claim from each of them the full amount of their individual ...

Fake Property Bank Details Fraud: Notary Held 70% Liable, Banks Cleared, but the Law Has Changed (Paris Court of First Instance, 11th Chamber, 2nd Section, 25 March 2026, No. RG 23/11725)

You are about to transfer funds to a notary to complete the purchase of a property. An email arrives that looks exactly like the ones ...

Attachment of Debts and Inaccurate Statement of Account: Nullity Requires a Total Absence, Not a Mere Calculation Error (Cass. 2e civ., 26 March 2026, No. 23-18.348)

Attachment of Debts and Inaccurate Statement of Account: Nullity Requires a Total Absence, Not a Mere Calculation Error – Cass. 2e civ., 26 March 2026, ...

Forfeiture of the Right to Interest for Failure to Hand Over the Insurance Notice in a Consumer Credit (Versailles Court of Appeal, Civil Chamber 1-2, 17 February 2026, No. RG 24/05557)

Did you take out a consumer credit with insurance? You may have thought the insurance was an administrative detail. For the courts, it is quite ...

Bank Fraud: Both Sending and Receiving Banks Held Liable for Breach of the Duty of Vigilance (TJ Clermont-Ferrand, First Civil Chamber, 3 April 2026, No. RG 23/03531)

Have you been the victim of a scam, and did your bank carry out the fraudulent transfers without so much as a question? This judgment ...

Home Loan Taken Out Before the Marriage: Can the Bank Seize Community Property?

Under the community of acquests regime (communauté réduite aux acquêts), a borrower who took out a home loan before getting married benefits from a protection ...

Starting Point of Limitation for an Autonomous Guarantee: Payable From Conclusion (CA Colmar, Chamber 1 a, 5 June 2024, No. RG 23/01747; Cass. com., 11 February 2026, No. K 24-18.252)

The first-demand guarantee (garantie à première demande) is often presented as the most formidable security instrument in business law: the guarantor pays, without being able ...

Variable-Rate Mortgages and Unfair Terms: What the CJEU Decided on WIBOR (CJEU, Third Chamber, 12 February 2026, C-471/24, J.J. v PKO BP S.A.)

Is your mortgage indexed to a variable rate linked to a financial index that you have never really understood? You are not alone. In Poland, ...

Annulled Swiss Franc Home Loan: Who Refunds the Borrower Insurance Premiums? (Cass. 1st civ., 11 March 2026, No. 24-21.018, Published in the Bulletin)

When a home loan agreement is annulled by the court, borrowers can legitimately hope to recover all the sums paid to their bank over the ...