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Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

Since 2014, Choralyne Dumesnil is committed to protecting victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. She has worked with numerous associations in France and California. The firm advises victims of sexual and gender-based violence, as well as companies in conducting an internal investigation in cases of reported sexual and gender-based harassment. 

Victims

Given the scale of this violence and the diversity of the situations encountered, the Firm provides advice, litigation, disciplinary proceedings, alternative dispute resolution in criminal law, family law, labor law, compensation law, education law, sports law, etc. The Firm is competent, in French law and Californian law, to assist and advise its clients in order to:

  • Qualifying violence. The firm advises clients on how to qualify violence such as rape – including incest –, sexual assault, sexual touching of minors, sexual harassment, so-called revenge pornography, sexual mutilation, and pimping.

  • Soliciting the conviction of the respondent in criminal proceedings. The Firm assists and represents clients in criminal litigation and in particular in procedures such as assistance in filing a complaint, filing complaints with civil action, investigative proceedings, hearings before the criminal court and the assize court, etc.).

    The Firm also assists clients in proceedings such as defamation, non-public defamation or malicious denunciation, which are sometimes brought by the defendants after the victim's words have been revealed. These proceedings are subject to specific and very short limitation rules (e.g. 3 months in certain cases), so it is important to contact the Firm as soon as possible.

  • Claiming compensation for damages. The Firm assists and represents clients in civil litigation (for example for compensation for damages), i.e. summary proceedings to obtain injunctions to do, prohibitions and provisions on compensation for damages suffered.

  • Seeking the conviction of the accused in the context of disciplinary proceedings. The Firm assists and represents clients in disciplinary proceedings (in education, business, the civil service, professional bodies) and in particular in setting up provisional measures to protect the victim.

  • Seeking protection in case of sexual harassment at university. The Firm is committed to victims and educational institutions determined to put an end to this violence. Advice and procedure in France and “Title IX” (United States) in cases of sexual harassment.

Our Method

  1. Criminal Litigation. The Firm assists and represents you in criminal litigation, particularly in procedures such as: filing a complaint, complaint with civil action, investigative procedures, hearings before the criminal court and the assize court, etc.
  2. Civil Litigation. The Firm assists and represents you in civil litigation (for example for compensation for damages), summary proceedings to obtain injunctions to do things, prohibitions and provisions on compensation for damages suffered.
Companies

The firm supports companies in carrying out internal investigations following reports by employees of situations of sexual and sexist harassment in the workplace.

Our method is as follows: 

  • Initial meeting with the employer and analysis of the report. Determination of the people to be heard as part of the investigation
  • Conducting interviews in person (or by videoconference, although this is avoided), presence of a sworn interpreter if necessary. Drafting of the Internal Investigation Report.
  • Submission of the Internal Investigation Report to the Employer

To go further, the Firm proposes: 

  • Carrying out an audit on the employer's compliance with its prevention obligations
  • Carrying out preventive actions with practical scenarios to teach employees how to respond to different situations while respecting their professional obligations

Child Protection

The firm advises children, parents, grandparents, health, education and child protection professionals and intervenes before jurisdictions such as:

Family Court

The firm assists you in proceedings before the family court. For example, to rule on parental authority, the organization of visiting rights including in associations known as “parent-child meeting places”.

When an amicable agreement is possible between the parties, the Firm assists you in its formalization.

Criminal Court

The Firm assists you in criminal proceedings to ensure the protection of your children – or your protection as a minor – by constituting a civil party, in particular for victims of incest, sexual assault on a minor, school bullying, revenge pornography, pedocriminality, pimping of minors, sexual mutilation, etc. 

In addition, the Firm advises and assists parents who wish to protect their children from violent and inappropriate behavior committed against them by the other parent. This need arises in particular following the commission of domestic violence, which children have often witnessed during or after the parents' separation.

The Firm advises, assists and represents the parent accused or victim of failure to present a child in the context of criminal proceedings (including in the event of a direct summons).

Juvenile Court

The firm assists you in proceedings before the juvenile court who can order, for example, educational judicial investigation measures (MIJE) and open environment educational assistance measures (AEMO).

Child abduction, including international

The Firm advises and assists the parent accused or victim of child abduction and international child abduction.