François Denis Tronchet
Encyclopedia
François Denis Tronchet (March 23, 1726 – March 10, 1806) was a French
jurist
.
Born in Paris
, he became an avocat at the Parlement de Paris, and gained a great reputation in a consultative capacity. In 1789, he was elected deputy to the Estates-General
. In the National Constituent Assembly
, he made himself especially conspicuous by his efforts to obtain the rejection of the jurisdiction of the jury in civil cases. He was chosen by King Louis XVI
as his defense counsel at his trial, and performed this difficult and dangerous task with ability and courage.
During the period of the Directory
, he was a deputy at the Council of the Ancients, where he unsuccessfully opposed the resolution that judges be nominated by the executive directory. Under the Consulate
he was the president of the tribunal of cassation, and collaborated in preparing the final scheme for the civil code. He had a marked influence on the code, and succeeded in introducing common law
principles in spite of the opposition of his colleagues, who were deeply imbued with Roman law
. Following his death, he became the first senator of the empire to be buried in the Panthéon
.
, Discours sur Tronchet (Paris, undated); Coqueret, Essai sur Tronchet (Caen, 1867).
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
.
Born in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, he became an avocat at the Parlement de Paris, and gained a great reputation in a consultative capacity. In 1789, he was elected deputy to the Estates-General
Estates-General of 1789
The Estates-General of 1789 was the first meeting since 1614 of the French Estates-General, a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm: the nobility, the Church, and the common people...
. In the National Constituent Assembly
National Constituent Assembly
The National Constituent Assembly was formed from the National Assembly on 9 July 1789, during the first stages of the French Revolution. It dissolved on 30 September 1791 and was succeeded by the Legislative Assembly.-Background:...
, he made himself especially conspicuous by his efforts to obtain the rejection of the jurisdiction of the jury in civil cases. He was chosen by King Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
as his defense counsel at his trial, and performed this difficult and dangerous task with ability and courage.
During the period of the Directory
French Directory
The Directory was a body of five Directors that held executive power in France following the Convention and preceding the Consulate...
, he was a deputy at the Council of the Ancients, where he unsuccessfully opposed the resolution that judges be nominated by the executive directory. Under the Consulate
French Consulate
The Consulate was the government of France between the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire in 1804...
he was the president of the tribunal of cassation, and collaborated in preparing the final scheme for the civil code. He had a marked influence on the code, and succeeded in introducing common law
Common law
Common law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive branch action...
principles in spite of the opposition of his colleagues, who were deeply imbued with Roman law
Roman law
Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, and the legal developments which occurred before the 7th century AD — when the Roman–Byzantine state adopted Greek as the language of government. The development of Roman law comprises more than a thousand years of jurisprudence — from the Twelve...
. Following his death, he became the first senator of the empire to be buried in the Panthéon
Panthéon, Paris
The Panthéon is a building in the Latin Quarter in Paris. It was originally built as a church dedicated to St. Genevieve and to house the reliquary châsse containing her relics but, after many changes, now functions as a secular mausoleum containing the remains of distinguished French citizens...
.
Further reading
François de NeufchâteauFrançois de Neufchâteau
Nicolas-Louis François de Neufchâteau was a French statesman, poet, and scientist.-Early years:Born at Saffais, in Meurthe-et-Moselle, the son of a schoolteacher, he studied at the Jesuit college of Neufchâteau in the Vosges, and at the age of fourteen published a volume of poetry which obtained...
, Discours sur Tronchet (Paris, undated); Coqueret, Essai sur Tronchet (Caen, 1867).