Top court censures parts of French public order law, keeps explosives seizure

The Conseil constitutionnel has partially censured the law “aimed at offering immediate responses to the phenomena disturbing public order, security and the tranquility of our fellow citizens,” in decision n° 2026-915 DC of 14 August 2026, published in the Journal officiel de la République française (JORF n°0192) of 19 August 2026. The ruling, rendered in the Council’s session of 12 August 2026 under its President Richard FERRAND, declared several provisions contrary to the Constitution while confirming the constitutionality of the law’s core mechanism for the forced disposal of explosives, pyrotechnic articles and explosive precursors.

The law n° 2026-798 of 18 August 2026 (NOR INTD2604047L) was referred to the Council on 24 July 2026 by two groups of deputies, including Boris VALLAUD and Mathilde PANOT. It strengthens administrative police powers and criminal penalties in the fields of explosives, pyrotechnics and precursors, illegal musical gatherings, road safety and narcotics. The Council examined the text against the Constitution and the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, as well as EU rules on explosive precursors (Regulation (EU) 2019/1148) and pyrotechnic articles (Directive 2013/29/UE).

The disposal mechanism upheld

The Council confirmed the new “Dessaisissement” chapter inserted into the code de la défense (articles L. 2352-3 to L. 2352-5). Under this procedure, the State representative in the department — or, in Paris, the préfet de police — may, by a reasoned decision, order a person to dispose of explosives, pyrotechnic articles or explosive precursors whose use could cause grave and imminent public order or security trouble.

• Disposal takes the form of a sale to a qualified legal person, or remittance to a body able to destroy the goods.
• The decision sets a deadline adapted to the circumstances; except in urgent cases, the holder is first given the opportunity to present observations.
• In case of non-compliance, the prefect may order remittance to the competent service under the control of a judicial police officer, and may seek authorization from the juge des libertés et de la détention to seize the goods in any private place, including a home, between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m.
• Non-compliance with the disposal conditions is punishable by six months’ imprisonment and a €3,750 fine; failure to remit the goods carries one year’s imprisonment and a €7,500 fine.

The Council held that this remittance or seizure does not amount to a deprivation of property within the meaning of Article 17 of the 1789 Declaration, and that the guarantees of procedure and judicial control make the interference with property rights proportionate.

Provisions struck down

By contrast, the Council declared contrary to the Constitution the first paragraph of article 1 of the law, which allowed the administrative closure of establishments selling explosives, pyrotechnic articles or precursors. It found that a closure of up to one year, entailing the loss of authorizations, could be ordered without any condition as to the gravity or repetition of the breach or a direct link to the trouble prevented, and without effective judicial recourse — an attack on freedom of enterprise that was manifestly disproportionate.

The Council also censured the application of the fixed fine procedure to the delits of article L. 557-60-1 of the code de l’environnement, whose elements cannot be readily established, in breach of equality before justice. Several other articles (10, 18, 26, 41 and 65) were struck down as “legislative riders” adopted without any link to the original bill.

Impact

The decision leaves the law’s flagship tool — the forced disposal of explosives and precursors to prevent public order trouble — fully in force, while curbing the most intrusive administrative powers. For citizens and businesses handling such products, the ruling confirms that disposal orders must respect procedural guarantees and judicial oversight, and that administrative closures of commercial premises cannot be imposed without proportionate safeguards.

Source: Journal officiel de la République française, n°0192 of 19 August 2026, p. — (official reference: decision n° 2026-915 DC of 14 August 2026, NOR CSCL2622260S; law n° 2026-798 of 18 August 2026, NOR INTD2604047L).