Dutreil Pact: Proposals for improving the notary profession

Although it remains an indispensable tool, the numerous modifications it has undergone have made it complex and open to avenues for improvement.

For 22 years, notaries have played a central role in the implementation of the Dutreil Pact; their expertise and experience therefore give them perfect legitimacy to propose today a number of adjustments that have become necessary.

Based on a survey conducted earlier this year among 654 notaries and on several months of work carried out by its Institute of Legal Studies (IEJ), the High Council of Notaries, acting responsibly, issues several proposals aimed at consolidating and ensuring the long-term viability of the Dutreil pact scheme:

• Strengthening the performance of assets dedicated to operations.

It is therefore proposed to:

• Review the concept of the utility of assets recorded in the balance sheet to better assess the professional nature of the assets;
• Maintain a threshold of predominance of these assets, but strengthen it from 50% to 70% (including cash) to ensure necessary flexibility in the management of the company.
• Establish a presumption of usefulness of cash related to the company's operational activity, according to objective and legible criteria.
• The legal requirements related to management functions and the duration of commitment and retention are subject to change.

This is why the notary profession proposes:

• To open up the governance of the majority family group in the capital to allow the exercise of a capital governance function;
• To strengthen the individual shareholding commitment period from 4 to 6 years. This consensus proposal to increase the individual commitment period by 50% aims to reinforce the beneficiaries' longer-term commitment to the company's capital. This commitment is in addition to the existing 2-year collective commitment.
• The notarial profession is finally calling for the removal of certain reporting obligations which are no longer relevant to informing the administration, but which can still lead to penalties if omitted.

According to Bertrand Savouré, president of the High Council of Notaries: “Thanks to its network and field experience, the notarial profession is able to contribute its expertise to public policy. Convinced of the usefulness of the Dutreil Pact, it is therefore resolutely committed to its continuation but hopes that certain adjustments will be made. It is under these conditions that its sustainability will be strengthened and that this mechanism will achieve its objective of stability for our businesses and therefore growth for the entire French economy.”