An HR manager may conduct a dismissal procedure against an employee from another entity within the same group

Council of State, 7 April 2026, n°499350

The Council of State rules that a person belonging to a group entity other than the company employing a protected employee may conduct the latter’s dismissal procedure and, in particular, chair the meeting at which the works council (Comité social et économique) was consulted on the proposed dismissal, request the authorization to terminate the employment contract, and sign the dismissal letter.

In this case, a company sought administrative authorization to dismiss a protected employee. Following a refusal, the Minister of Labor, having been referred to on a hierarchical appeal, overturned that decision and authorized the dismissal. This decision was upheld by the administrative court of appeal.

The Council of State, hearing an appeal brought by the employee, reaffirmed the general principle that an employer cannot delegate to a person external to the company the authority to conduct a dismissal procedure, but then confirmed the validity of the dismissal on this case on the grounds that:

• the procedure had been conducted by members of the human resources function of another group company, assigned to provide assistance in personnel management, pursuant to an intra-group agreement, and
• the president of the employing company had issued specific delegations of authority to employees of that entity to conduct the said procedure.

A few days earlier, the Court of cassation had set out two criteria for an employee to validly sign the dismissal letter of a colleague from another entity within the same group:

• first, the signatory must be responsible for human resources management within the employing entity;
• second, they must belong to the parent company or to another group entity exercising authority over the employer (Court of cassation, 1st April 2026, n°24-18.946).

The Council of State’s ruling illustrates a situation in which one entity exercises such authority over another.