FRANCE Law and Practice Contributed by: Emmanuèle Lutfalla and Louis Fer, Signature Litigation AARPI
damage occurred and the contractual relationships between the different actors. From an insurance perspective, this creates a par- ticular challenge because the same AI-related event may trigger several policies across different jurisdic- tions. Cyber, professional liability, product liability and technology policies may all potentially respond, with different governing laws and jurisdiction clauses. 3. Arbitration in Insurance Disputes 3.1 Recognition of Arbitration Clauses French law is firmly pro-arbitration. Arbitration clauses in insurance and reinsurance contracts are generally recognised and enforced, provided the parties have the capacity to enter into them. Under French law, arbitration clauses are valid in contracts entered into in the course of a professional activity, which covers the vast majority of commercial and industrial insur- ance contracts. French courts also apply the principle of compétence - compétence . Where a valid arbitration clause exists, the court will generally decline jurisdiction unless the arbitration agreement is manifestly null or inapplica- ble. The arbitral tribunal is therefore primarily respon- sible for ruling on its own jurisdiction. The position is particularly straightforward in rein- surance, where arbitration clauses are standard and rarely challenged The main limitations arise in consumer insurance, where the policyholder has not contracted in the course of a professional activity and arbitration clauses may not be enforceable. Overall, arbitration is well established in the French insurance market, particularly for sophisticated commercial parties, and French courts are generally supportive of its use in international disputes. 3.2 Enforcement of Arbitral Awards France is one of the most enforcement-friendly juris- dictions in the world for arbitral awards. Both domes- tic and international awards can be enforced through an exequatur procedure before the French courts,
with the Paris Judicial Court having jurisdiction over international awards. The grounds for refusing enforcement are narrowly defined and rarely applied. For international awards, French courts apply the limited grounds set out in the Code of Civil Procedure, including lack of jurisdiction, due process violations and breaches of international public policy. Importantly, French courts do not review the merits of the award. Awards rendered abroad are also enforceable under the New York Convention, to which France is a party, and French courts have a strong track record of grant- ing exequatur. Practical barriers to enforcement are therefore generally limited. France has even granted exequatur to arbitral awards that had been annulled by the courts of the seat. 3.3 Practical Use of Arbitration in Insurance Matters Arbitration is widely used in reinsurance disputes in France. It is the default dispute resolution mechanism in most treaty and facultative reinsurance contracts. In direct insurance, arbitration is less systematic but increasingly common in large commercial pro- grammes, particularly those involving international parties or cross-border risks. Financial lines, energy, construction and infrastructure are the sectors where arbitration clauses appear most frequently. The main advantages cited by practitioners are con- fidentiality, which is especially valued by insurers and reinsurers wishing to avoid public proceedings, the ability to appoint arbitrators with insurance expertise, and flexibility in procedure. Arbitration is also increas- ingly used in disputes raising specific insurance ques- tions, such as W&I insurance disputes arising in the context of M&A transactions, where the speed, con- fidentiality and technical expertise of arbitrators are particularly valued. As regards challenge and appeal, the scope is delib- erately narrow under French law: international awards can only be set aside on the limited grounds set out in the Code of Civil Procedure for international awards, and on similarly restricted grounds for domestic awards.
106 I NSURANCE L I T IGATI O N 2026
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