Abstract

The author delves into the consequences of the European Human Rights Convention on the arrangement of contentious administrative cases in the French system, observing how the question of the influence of European law on the administrative trial is a highly sensitive one since the central issue in this case is really that of offering citizens a fair trial in a context where one of the parties benefits from privileges and excessive substantive rules created and enforced by a judge who is himself (or herself) part of the administration. After having reviewed the organisational model of the French administrative trial, the author observes that if, on the one hand, the European Human Rights Convention reduces the freedom of the judge vis-à-vis the trial, on the other hand, it is not impossible for the same judge to maintain a margin of manoeuvre when justified by the quality of the justice.