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...une mésure d'incapacité civile.

English translation: see explanation

20:44 Dec 9, 2004
French to English translations [Non-PRO]
Law/Patents - Law (general)
French term or phrase: ...une mésure d'incapacité civile.
Part of a declaration by a manager of a company basically certifying that he's not bankrupt and is fit to run the company. But what exactly does this mean? Thanks.
Blurbfly (X)
Local time: 19:34
English translation:see explanation
Explanation:
The term "incapacité civile" means "civil disability"; so basically the director is declaring that he is not subect to a civil disability ruling or penalty. The two references below might help.

1) Subject Law - Legislation - Jurisprudence (JU)
Definition incapacité:état d'une personne privée par la loi de la jouissance ou de l'exercice de certains droits
TERM incapacité civile
Reference FRANKL;DF,NT:Guillien/Vincent,Lexique de termes juridiques,Dalloz 1978
Note {NTE} l'incapacité est dite d'exercice lorsque la personne qui en est frappée est inapte à mettre en oeuvre elle-même ou à exercer seule certains droits dont elle demeure titulaire l'incapacité est dite de jouissance lorsque la personne qui en est frappée est inapte à être titulaire d'un ou plusieurs droits
Translation:
TERM disqualified from making a contract
Reference Dictionnaire juridique,Le Docte,Kluwer

2) DEPARTMENT OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY - QUINQUENNIAL REVIEW OF THE INSOLVENCY SERVICE 2000 - STAGE 1 SEPTEMBER 2000
Insolvency Service Review Team
section 3.12.
The Companies Directors Disqualification Act 1986 consolidated disqualification in successive Companies Acts (essentially relating to criminal convictions) and re-wrote the civil disqualification provisions in the 1976 Insolvency Act which had been little used because of perceived legal complexities and problems and, it has been suggested, a lack of political and Service will and allocation of resources. Proceedings under the new civil disqualification provisions may be based on a single failure (where previously it had required 2 in five years); there are definitions of unfit conduct (extended by case law); and courts are required to disqualify for 2-15 years where unfitnes is found (where previously it had a discretion even if the case was proved). Director includes anyone who acts as a director, by whatever name called, including shadow directors. The Act applies in England, Wales and Scotland.


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Note added at 13 hrs 36 mins (2004-12-10 10:20:56 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

The legal definitions for \'incapacity\' and \'disability\' that I found are
Incapacity – Law : something that renders one legally ineligible; a disqualification.
Disability – Law : a legal incapacity or disqualification.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company

A google search for \'civil disability\' produced the reference I quoted, while a similar search for \'civil incapacity\' referred to examples where the inability was because of an external cause, not because of a legal penalty being applied. However, it does seem as if the two phrases are very close in meaning.




--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 15 hrs 57 mins (2004-12-10 12:42:01 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

What about \'subject to a civil (or legal) disqualification order\' as a more general term?
Selected response from:

Amanda Bracken
France
Local time: 20:34
Grading comment
Amanda, thanks for the helpful information. Sorry for the delay..
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5legal impediment
Kpy
4in a position of incompetance, inability or incapacity in private life
Anna Maria Augustine (X)
4...any civil incapacity order.
Charlotte Allen
3see explanation
Amanda Bracken


  

Answers


34 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
...une mésure d'incapacité civile.
in a position of incompetance, inability or incapacity in private life


Explanation:
Meaning he is perfectly capable in his personal or private life. He manages his personal affairs with perfect competance.

Anna Maria Augustine (X)
France
Local time: 20:34
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 98

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  DocteurPC: meaning he is not capable (incompetency) not incompetance
56 mins
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
...une mesure d'incapacité civile.
...any civil incapacity order.


Explanation:
In a legal context, this has a slightly different meaning to the one suggested above. The 'mesure d'incapacité civile' is a legal 'measure' taken by the state in the case of a person suffering certain mental disturbances, and has the effect of making that person a 'ward of the state', deprived of the majority of their usual legal powers (e.g. to form a company, sign contracts, buy and sell property etc.) It includes such measures as 'tutelle' and 'curatelle'.

So by signing this declaration, the company manager is declaring that he/she is 'not under any civil incapacity order'. He is going further than just saying he is competent to do his job (in his own eyes or the eyes of others); he is saying that he is fully authorised in the eyes of the law to exercise all the powers he will need in the running of a company (or, rather, that he has not had those powers taken away).

Hope this helps.




    Reference: http://www.udaf73.asso.fr/pages/lienactu/tut-etat.html
    Reference: http://www.udaf73.asso.fr/pages/lienactu/curatelledetat.html
Charlotte Allen
United Kingdom
Local time: 19:34
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 160

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Amanda Bracken: A good explanation, but I feel that the company manager is declaring that he is not subject to a 'civil disability' order because of legal penalties being imposed because of, for example, brankruptcy.
11 hrs
  -> I do agree with you, Amanda, and I think you have probably hit on the right explanation. I think it's just a US/UK law terminology thing - in the UK 'civil disability' as a phrase doesn't exist, but it certainly does in the US.
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
...une mésure d'incapacité civile.
legal impediment


Explanation:
in English law we would say some thing like "being subject to no legal impediment ..........".
It's not a literal translation, but that's what it means.

Kpy
France
Local time: 20:34
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 24
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
...une mésure d'incapacité civile.
see explanation


Explanation:
The term "incapacité civile" means "civil disability"; so basically the director is declaring that he is not subect to a civil disability ruling or penalty. The two references below might help.

1) Subject Law - Legislation - Jurisprudence (JU)
Definition incapacité:état d'une personne privée par la loi de la jouissance ou de l'exercice de certains droits
TERM incapacité civile
Reference FRANKL;DF,NT:Guillien/Vincent,Lexique de termes juridiques,Dalloz 1978
Note {NTE} l'incapacité est dite d'exercice lorsque la personne qui en est frappée est inapte à mettre en oeuvre elle-même ou à exercer seule certains droits dont elle demeure titulaire l'incapacité est dite de jouissance lorsque la personne qui en est frappée est inapte à être titulaire d'un ou plusieurs droits
Translation:
TERM disqualified from making a contract
Reference Dictionnaire juridique,Le Docte,Kluwer

2) DEPARTMENT OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY - QUINQUENNIAL REVIEW OF THE INSOLVENCY SERVICE 2000 - STAGE 1 SEPTEMBER 2000
Insolvency Service Review Team
section 3.12.
The Companies Directors Disqualification Act 1986 consolidated disqualification in successive Companies Acts (essentially relating to criminal convictions) and re-wrote the civil disqualification provisions in the 1976 Insolvency Act which had been little used because of perceived legal complexities and problems and, it has been suggested, a lack of political and Service will and allocation of resources. Proceedings under the new civil disqualification provisions may be based on a single failure (where previously it had required 2 in five years); there are definitions of unfit conduct (extended by case law); and courts are required to disqualify for 2-15 years where unfitnes is found (where previously it had a discretion even if the case was proved). Director includes anyone who acts as a director, by whatever name called, including shadow directors. The Act applies in England, Wales and Scotland.


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 13 hrs 36 mins (2004-12-10 10:20:56 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

The legal definitions for \'incapacity\' and \'disability\' that I found are
Incapacity – Law : something that renders one legally ineligible; a disqualification.
Disability – Law : a legal incapacity or disqualification.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company

A google search for \'civil disability\' produced the reference I quoted, while a similar search for \'civil incapacity\' referred to examples where the inability was because of an external cause, not because of a legal penalty being applied. However, it does seem as if the two phrases are very close in meaning.




--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 15 hrs 57 mins (2004-12-10 12:42:01 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

What about \'subject to a civil (or legal) disqualification order\' as a more general term?


    Reference: http://europa.eu.int/eurodicautom/Controller
    Reference: http://www.dti.gov.uk/inssweb/section3.htm
Amanda Bracken
France
Local time: 20:34
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
Grading comment
Amanda, thanks for the helpful information. Sorry for the delay..

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Charlotte Allen: Excellent explanation - I would only quibble with one point - "incapacité civile" should by rights be translated as 'civil (or legal) incapacity', not 'disability'.
10 hrs
  -> Thanks for your comment. As you can see from the note I added above, the two terms seem very close in meaning, but the examples I found led me to choose 'civil disability'.
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