What does the law say?

The right of reply allows a person named or designated in a public communication (written press, radio, television) to make their point of view known via the same communication medium. The right of reply is a general and absolute principle (Court of Cassation civ. 1, June 27, 2018, n°17-21.823).

There are three different regimes for the right of reply:

1. Right of reply in the written press

In the written press, the right of reply is not subject to an intention to harm on the part of the article’s author. This right is governed by the law of July 29, 1881, particularly Article 13.

The law only covers the written press, whether daily or periodical. Non-printed media and non-periodical written publications (such as books or posters) are therefore excluded.

There are five cases in the 1881 law that open the right to reply:

1. The right of rectification for public authority depositaries “regarding acts of their function that have been inaccurately reported” (Art. 12 L. 1881).
2. The right of reply for individuals, specifically “for any person named or designated” in a periodical publication (Art. 13).
3. The right of reply for heirs of a deceased person whose “memory has been attacked” (Art. 34 paragraph 2).
4. The right of reply for associations fighting against racism exercised against racial defamation (Art. 13-1 introduced by law n° 90-615 of July 13, 1990).
5. The right of reply for persons cleared by a dismissal, acquittal or discharge, when they had been designated in the press “on the occasion of criminal proceedings” (Art. 13 para.12).

2. The audiovisual right of reply

In the field of audiovisual media (television, radio), it is Article 6 of Law No. 82-652 of July 29, 1982 on audiovisual communication that governs the right of reply. In this area, the right of reply is limited to statements likely to damage the honor and reputation of the person named or designated.

3. The right of reply on the Internet

On the Internet, it is Article 6 VI and V of Law No. 2004-575 of June 21, 2004, for confidence in the digital economy (“LCEN” law) that governs this right of reply. It is supplemented by Decree No. 2007-1527 of October 24, 2007 relating to the right of reply applicable to public online communication services. Article 1 of this decree establishes an exclusion: the right of reply “cannot be initiated when users are able, due to the nature of the public online communication service, to directly formulate observations called for by a message that concerns them.” The right of reply is thus excluded on blogs or discussion forums, such as X (formerly Twitter) for example.

The beneficiary of the right of reply

• The right of reply can be exercised by any person designated or named in a press article or other media, whether they are a natural or legal person. If the author of the reply was not expressly named in the article, it is sufficient that they are easily identifiable (Cass. crim., June 4, 1953).
• Regarding legal entities, the right of reply is exercised by their legal representative.
• In principle, it must be exercised personally by the person in question, unless they have given a special mandate to a lawyer to exercise this right on their behalf (Cass. crim. Feb. 22, 2000, n° 99-82.011).

The recipient of the right of reply

In the case of the written press: the reply must be addressed expressly to the publication director by the person concerned, under penalty of inadmissibility (Cass. civ. 2nd, April 29, 1998, n° 94-14.139) at the address of the newspaper’s registered office.

In the case of the Internet: in principle, the legal notices appearing on the site should allow finding the person to whom to address one’s right of reply. However, in the case of anonymous sites or in the absence of information, the right of reply must be addressed to the host of the site in question, who will then transmit it to the editor of the Internet site.

For evidentiary reasons, it is strongly recommended to send the right of reply by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt.

The request for insertion of the right of reply

• The reply must be requested within three (3) months from:

1. the day of publication for print media;
2. the broadcast of the message for audiovisual media;
3. the making available to the public of the message justifying the request on the Internet.

• The requester must specify the allegations to which they wish to respond.
• The response must adhere to certain formalities. Otherwise, the insertion of the right of reply may be refused.

The content of the response must comply with the law, good morals, public order and not harm the interests of a third party or the honor of the journalist (Cass. crim. November 3, 2020, n° 19-85.276).

The author of the response cannot address topics other than those covered in the publication in question. The right of reply should not become a platform .

Similarly, “malicious and hurtful insinuations” are sufficient to justify a refusal of insertion (Cass. crim., March 23, 1993).

The size of the right of reply is limited:

In the case of print media:

• The principle: the response must be limited to the length of the article or statements.
• However, it can reach 50 lines even if the article is shorter, but it cannot exceed 200 lines even if the article in question is longer (art.13 L. 1881).

In the case of radio and television:

• The message cannot exceed thirty typed lines and two minutes of airtime.

The publication of the right of reply

• If the right of reply is correctly exercised, the publication director has the obligation to publish it in its entirety without modifying the content.
• For print media, this insertion is “made in the same place and in the same characters as the article that provoked it and without intercalation“.
• The right of reply is exercised free of charge.
• For print media and on the Internet, the publication director is required to insert the response within three days of receiving the request (24 hours during election periods).
• For audiovisual media, they have a period of eight days.

Refusal to insert the right of reply

• The refusal to insert the right of reply constitutes an offense, while in audiovisual matters it constitutes a civil fault. The offense is committed when the response is not published within the time limits and forms prescribed by law. Thus, publication that is not “in the issue following the day after receipt” within the meaning of Article 13 paragraph 2, or the publication of a truncated response, constitute the offense.
• On the criminal level, the refusal of insertion is punishable by a fine of 3,750 euros, for print media and on the Internet.

What to do if your right of reply is not respected?

• You can file a complaint. The prosecution of the offense must be initiated within three months from the date on which the response should have appeared in accordance with the law.
• On the civil level, you can request a summary procedure. It allows for obtaining the effective publication of the response and the person concerned can claim compensation for their damages.
• You can call upon Equitas who will assist you in your proceedings.

APPLICABLE REFERENCES:

Articles 12, 13, 13-1 and 34 para. 2 of the law of July 29, 1881 on the freedom of the press; Article 6 of law n°82-652 of July 29, 1982 on audiovisual communication as modified by article 5 of law n°2004-575 of June 21, 2004 for confidence in the digital economy (“LCEN” law); Implementing decree n°2007-1527 of October 24, 2007 relating to the right of reply; Law n° 90-615 of July 13, 1990 aimed at suppressing any racist, anti-Semitic or xenophobic act.

Court of Cassation civ. 1, 27 June 2018, No. 17-21.823; Cass. crim. 15 Dec. 1934; Cass. crim., 4 June 1953; Cass. crim. 22 Feb. 2000, No. 99-82.011; Cass. civ. 2nd, 29 April 1998, No. 94-14.139; Cass. crim. 3 Nov. 2020, No. 19-85.276; Cass. crim., 23 March 1993.