Issue: the Constitutional Council (Conseil Constitutionnel) was asked to verify the constitutionality of the proposed legislation subjecting certain associations to the a priori approval of administrative or judicial authorities.
Holding: the Constitutional Council invalidated the proposed legislation
Reasoning: the principle of freedom of association underlies the
general provisions of the law of July 1, 1901 relating to the contract of
association. It provides that associations are freely constituted and can be
made public subject only to the requirement of the filing of a prior
declaration. The formation ofassociations, even when they appear to be void
or to have an illicit purpose, cannot as a condition of their validity be
subjected to prior action by the administrative authorities or even by the
judiciary. Accordingly, the proposed law instituting a procedure subjecting
associations to a prior review by the judiciary of their conformity with the
law is unconstitutional.
