Natural person

Under French law, a natural person is a human being who, as such, possesses legal personality. In order to exercise their legal capacity (or legal personality) directly and fully, a natural person must be of full age (unless they have been emancipated before reaching the age of majority) and must not be subject to partial or total legal incapacity (placed under guardianship or curatorship); otherwise, this capacity is exercised on their behalf by a legal representative.

Every natural person is entitled to:

• ‘subjective rights’. These are prerogatives granted in their own interest, enabling them to enjoy a thing or a value, or to demand a service from others (for example: ownership, the right to privacy);
• obligations towards other individuals (under an employment contract, for example) and the wider society (for example, the obligation to pay compensation for damage caused by a criminal offence).