Annulling a Swiss franc loan: the stages of a claim.

Proceedings against a Swiss franc loan go through several stages, from receipt of the claim to what follows the judgment. After the eligibility review and the signing of the fee agreement, the lawyer sends the bank a formal notice, then summons it before the court. The parties exchange written submissions before the hearing and the judgment. How long it takes depends on each court’s calendar.

The stages of a claim.

In the Swiss franc loan programme, each client’s online space shows the calendar of their claim:

1. Case received and analysed.
2. Eligibility review.
3. Signing the fee agreement.
4. Funding confirmed.
5. Formal notice to the bank.
6. Summons before the court.
7. Exchange of written submissions.
8. Hearing.
9. Judgment.
10. After the decision.

Each stage moves from “Upcoming” to “In progress”, then to “Completed”. You follow your claim from your online space, with its documents and messages.

Who does what.

The client answers the questions of the test, uploads the documents and follows the claim from their online space. They sign the fee agreement and decide, with their lawyer, on the next steps.

ACTIVE AVOCATS, a firm of the COGEP AVOCATS group, reviews the claim, drafts the documents and conducts the proceedings independently. Hello Justice funds the claim and provides the calculation of its simulator, on which the firm relies to quantify the claim.

The judicial officer serves procedural documents, such as the summons or the judgment, and enforces court decisions. The court decides the dispute between the borrower and the bank.

The review of the claim.

The first step is the programme’s eligibility test: you answer a few questions about your loan, then upload your documents, straight away or later from your online space. Our list of documents to gather sets them out.

ACTIVE AVOCATS reads your loan offer and checks its dates. A specialised partner lawyer then analyses the eligibility of the claim: the features of the dispute, the limitation period, the completeness of the documents and the reasonable prospects of success. Not every claim is accepted. Having your case checked is free, as are the eligibility test and the submission, and the €300 incl. VAT is only paid when an accepted claim is opened.

The review looks first at the exchange‑rate clause and at the information given at signing. Our article on the exchange‑rate clause sets out what the court expects of it.

The fee agreement and the funding.

For each claim it accepts, the firm sends you the fee agreement, to be signed online by you, the lawyer and Hello Justice. Hello Justice covers 100% of your lawyer’s fees, whatever the amount you borrowed. If the review shows that your claim is not eligible, the lawyer ends the agreement, at no cost to anyone.

Hello Justice funds the claim and plays no part in running the proceedings. The choice of your lawyer is yours. The price of the programme is set out in our article on the cost of proceedings.

The formal notice to the bank.

Before going to court, the lawyer sends the bank a formal notice. It sets out the claim and invites the bank to respond. The documents of the proceedings, formal notice, summons and submissions, can then be uploaded by the firm to your online space. An agreement with the bank remains possible at every stage, and you consider it with your lawyer.

The summons before the court.

Without an agreement, the lawyer summons the bank before the court. The summons sets out the borrower’s claim and the documents it rests on. The French Consumer Code gives the borrower a choice. They can go to one of the courts with jurisdiction under the Code of Civil Procedure. They can also go to the court of the place where they lived when the contract was concluded (article R. 631-3) Source [1].

The summons is served on the bank by a judicial officer. In the programme, the €300 incl. VAT paid when an accepted claim is opened covers in particular the stamp duty and the judicial officer.

The written submissions and the hearing.

Each party sets out its arguments in writing, in submissions, and produces its documents. The bank may produce the documents it handed over at signing. For the Court of Justice of the European Union, the burden of proving that the clause is plain and intelligible cannot rest on the borrower Source [2].

The case is then argued at the hearing, after which the court delivers its judgment. The stages and their dates appear in your online space. It also holds your claim’s messages, the assistant and the frequently asked questions.

The judgment and what follows.

The judgment decides whether the exchange‑rate clause is unfair. An unfair term is deemed unwritten, and the contract continues to apply without it if it can subsist (article L. 241-1 of the French Consumer Code) Source [3]. The loan is then recalculated as if it had been taken out in euros, from the outset (Cour de cassation, 12 July 2023) Source [4]. If it cannot subsist, the contract is annulled, and what was performed must be returned Source [5].

The judgment may be appealed, by the bank or by the borrower. Before the court of appeal, when representation by a lawyer is compulsory, the parties owe an appeal duty of €225 (article 1635 bis P of the French General Tax Code) Source [6]. If there is an appeal, Hello Justice also covers 100% of your lawyer’s fees, as well as local counsel before the court of appeal. Only the €225 appeal duty remains yours to pay.

As in any lawsuit, the court may order the losing party to pay the other side a procedural indemnity, under article 700, and the costs of the proceedings. If the bank does not comply, a judicial officer can enforce the decision.

If the claim succeeds, the funds are paid to the client once the decision is final. The success fee is then taken from the lawyer’s CARPA account, the client‑money account supervised by the bar. Our guide to estimating the gain from annulment shows what the calculation compares.

Frequently asked questions.

How long do proceedings take?

No duration can be announced in advance. It depends on the court’s calendar, the exchange of submissions and any appeal. You follow each stage from your online space.

Do I have to pay costs during the proceedings?

If your case is accepted, you pay €300 incl. VAT when it is opened. This covers the court costs needed to sue your bank (stamp duty, judicial officer, local counsel). Hello Justice covers 100% of your lawyer’s fees, whatever the amount you borrowed.

Who conducts the proceedings?

ACTIVE AVOCATS conducts the proceedings independently. Hello Justice funds the claim and plays no part in the firm’s strategy. The choice of your lawyer is yours.

Can I stop the proceedings along the way?

You have the right of withdrawal under articles L. 221-18 et seq. of the French Consumer Code. If you take the claim away from the lawyer after the summons has been sent, the success fee remains due.

What happens if I lose?

You repay nothing to Hello Justice: the fees it covered stay covered, and the success fee is only due if the case succeeds. What you paid is not returned to you: the €300 incl. VAT of procedural costs and, if there was an appeal, the €225 appeal duty. As in any lawsuit, the court may also order the losing party to pay the other side a procedural indemnity (article 700) and the costs of the proceedings.

Where can I find the whole process?

Our guide to the borrower’s remedies covers the whole process. The page on the rulings of 9 July 2025 sets out the decisions concerning borrowers paid in Swiss francs, recent case law, liable to change.