The nomenclature of personal injury items, known as the Dintilhac nomenclature, has been setting the reference framework in this area for more than twenty years. Although it is not directly normative in nature, it is applied on a daily basis by all practitioners of personal injury law.
Over the years, the Court of Cassation has been led, by its case law, to shape this nomenclature, with changes which, for some of them, are important, such as the recognition of the damage of imminent death or the damage of anxiety.
It had thus become essential to revise the Dintilhac nomenclature. To this end, Christophe Soulard, First President of the Court of Cassation, and Rémy Heitz, Public Prosecutor at the said Court, entrusted, in July 2025, Savinien Grignon Dumoulin, then First Advocate General of the Second Civil Chamber, and Domitille Duval-Arnoud, Dean of the First Civil Chamber of the Court, with the task of leading a working group composed of judges of the Court, subject matter specialists.
After more than a year of work, during which this group has drawn up a complete inventory of the case law and has held numerous hearings, it submitted its report on 2 November 2026 at an event organised at the Court of Cassation.
In accordance with the task entrusted to it, the working group proposes a revised version of the nomenclature. This revised version not only incorporates the advances in case law and the necessary clarifications, but also improves and clarifies the structuring of the nomenclature and accompanies the items of prejudice with very precise explanations, such as to facilitate their use and promote the harmonisation of practices.
The working group also makes several other recommendations concerning compensation for bodily injury: on medical expertise and on methods of capitalization and evaluation of damages.
In addition, on the basis of the extensive discussions it has had with the members of the Council of State who are specialists in this dispute, the working group proposes to set up a permanent liaison committee involving the two courts, to reflect together on the matter and contribute to convergent responses, while respecting the judicial independence of each of the courts.
In parallel with this work, in order to also contribute to the overall coherence of solutions in this area, Christophe Soulard has entrusted Benoît Mornet, Honorary Advisor to the Court of Cassation, with the task of leading, within the Court, a group of magistrates specializing in the subject, and, with the courts of appeal, the working group that ensures, For the past twelve years, the monitoring and updating of the personal injury compensation framework.
Read more: Revision of the Dintilhac nomenclature: report of the working group | Court of Cassation
Source: https://x.com/Courdecassation/status/2117939640523174339?a=Z1bvDmDAw4DksXhZrUs&s=20
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