# French — NDAs and Service Agreements Sub-Lexicon

Maps French confidentiality and services vocabulary to correct English equivalents.
Covers NDAs / confidentiality agreements and undertakings, and service agreements of an
administrative or professional nature (SLAs, outsourcing, consultancy, managed services,
MSAs/SOWs).

See also `french-corporate-ma-jv.md` and `french-ip-it-technology.md`.

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## Part 1 — NDAs / Confidentiality

### Core NDA Terms

| French | English |
|---|---|
| accord de confidentialité | non-disclosure agreement (NDA) / confidentiality agreement |
| accord de non-divulgation | non-disclosure agreement (NDA) |
| engagement de confidentialité | confidentiality undertaking |
| informations confidentielles | confidential information |
| informations exclusives / propriétaires | proprietary information |
| secrets d'affaires | trade secrets |
| partie divulgatrice / émettrice | disclosing party |
| partie réceptrice / destinataire | receiving party |
| finalité / objet autorisé | permitted purpose / permitted use |
| divulgation | disclosure |
| divulgation autorisée | permitted disclosure |
| obligation de confidentialité | confidentiality obligation |
| obligation de non-divulgation | non-disclosure obligation |
| obligation de non-utilisation | non-use obligation |
| destinataires autorisés | authorised recipients / permitted recipients |
| représentants | representatives |
| conseils / conseillers | advisers |
| sociétés affiliées / liées | affiliates |
| aucune garantie d'exactitude / d'exhaustivité | no representation or warranty as to accuracy |
| aucun engagement contraignant | no binding commitment |
| réserve de propriété intellectuelle | intellectual property reservation |
| clause de résidus | residuals clause |
| exigence de marquage / identification | marking requirement |

### M&A / Transactional NDA Provisions

| French | English |
|---|---|
| clause de standstill / d'abstention | standstill provision |
| non-sollicitation du personnel | non-solicitation of employees |
| non-contournement | non-circumvention |
| clean team / équipe restreinte | clean team |
| data room / salle de données | data room |
| règlement de la data room | data room rules |

### Exceptions and Exclusions

| French | English |
|---|---|
| exceptions à la confidentialité / exclusions | exceptions to confidentiality / exclusions |
| informations du domaine public | publicly available information |
| informations qui sont ou deviennent du domaine public | information that is or becomes publicly available |
| sans faute de la partie réceptrice | through no fault of the receiving party |
| informations développées de manière indépendante / autonome | independently developed information |
| informations déjà en possession | information already in possession |
| informations reçues de tiers de manière licite | information received from a third party without restriction |
| divulgation requise par la loi | disclosure required by law |
| décision de justice ou injonction d'une autorité | order of a court or authority |
| obligation de notification préalable | obligation to give prior notice |
| lanceur d'alerte | whistleblowing carve-out |

### Term and Remedies

| French | English |
|---|---|
| durée de confidentialité | confidentiality period |
| survie | survival |
| obligation de restitution | return obligation |
| obligation de destruction | destruction obligation |
| attestation de destruction | certification of destruction |
| exception pour copies de sauvegarde / archives | back-up / archival exception |
| mesures conservatoires / référé / injonction | injunctive relief / interim relief |
| exécution en nature / exécution forcée | specific performance |
| dommages et intérêts | damages |
| clause pénale / dommages et intérêts liquidés | liquidated damages |

### Mutual vs Unilateral

| French | English |
|---|---|
| accord bilatéral / réciproque | mutual NDA / bilateral NDA |
| accord unilatéral | unilateral NDA / one-way NDA |
| chaque partie agissant en qualité de partie divulgatrice et réceptrice | each party acting as both disclosing party and receiving party |

### NDA Section Headings

| French | English |
|---|---|
| DÉFINITIONS | DEFINITIONS |
| OBLIGATIONS DE CONFIDENTIALITÉ | CONFIDENTIALITY OBLIGATIONS |
| EXCLUSIONS / EXCEPTIONS | EXCLUSIONS |
| ABSENCE DE GARANTIE | NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY |
| ABSENCE D'ENGAGEMENT | NO BINDING COMMITMENT |
| PROPRIÉTÉ INTELLECTUELLE | INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY |
| STANDSTILL | STANDSTILL |
| NON-SOLLICITATION | NON-SOLICITATION |
| RESTITUTION ET DESTRUCTION | RETURN AND DESTRUCTION |
| DURÉE | TERM |
| RECOURS | REMEDIES |
| LOI APPLICABLE ET JURIDICTION | GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION |
| DISPOSITIONS GÉNÉRALES | MISCELLANEOUS |

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## Part 2 — Service Agreements

### Core Service Agreement Terms

| French | English |
|---|---|
| contrat de prestation de services / contrat de services | service agreement |
| convention de niveau de service / SLA | service level agreement (SLA) |
| contrat d'externalisation / d'outsourcing | outsourcing agreement |
| contrat de services gérés | managed services agreement |
| contrat de conseil / de consultation | consultancy agreement |
| contrat d'assistance technique | technical assistance agreement |
| contrat de gestion / de management | management agreement |
| contrat-cadre de services | master services agreement (MSA) |
| bon de commande / commande spécifique / statement of work | statement of work (SOW) / work order |
| prestataire de services | service provider / supplier |
| client / donneur d'ordre | client / customer |
| prestations / services | services |
| étendue / périmètre des prestations | scope of services |
| cahier des charges | specifications / statement of work |
| niveaux de service | service levels |
| indicateurs clés de performance (KPI) | key performance indicators (KPIs) |
| objectifs de niveau de service | service level objectives (SLOs) |
| temps de réponse | response time |
| temps de résolution | resolution time |
| disponibilité / taux de disponibilité | availability / uptime |
| fenêtre de maintenance | maintenance window |
| livrable | deliverable |

### Fee and Payment Terms

| French | English |
|---|---|
| rémunération / honoraires | fees / charges |
| rémunération forfaitaire / prix forfaitaire | fixed fee / lump-sum fee |
| rémunération au temps passé / en régie | time-and-materials fee |
| rémunération au coût majoré | cost-plus fee |
| plafond / montant maximum | cap / not-to-exceed amount |
| crédits de service / pénalités de service | service credits |
| clause pénale / dommages liquidés | liquidated damages |
| prime de performance | performance bonus |
| clause de benchmarking | benchmark review |
| conditions de paiement | payment terms |
| délai de paiement | payment period |
| facturation | invoicing |

### Acceptance and Handover

| French | English |
|---|---|
| recette / réception | acceptance |
| critères d'acceptation / de réception | acceptance criteria |
| tests de recette / de réception | acceptance testing |
| période d'essai / pilote | trial period / pilot period |
| recette tacite / acceptation présumée | deemed acceptance |
| passation / remise | handover |
| plan de transition | transition plan |
| transition entrante | on-boarding / transition-in |
| transition sortante | off-boarding / transition-out / exit assistance |
| plan / clause de réversibilité | exit plan / disengagement plan |

### Operational and Obligation Terms

| French | English |
|---|---|
| centre d'assistance / helpdesk | help desk / service desk |
| ticket / demande d'intervention | ticket / service request |
| incident | incident |
| problème | problem |
| escalade | escalation |
| priorité / gravité | priority / severity level |
| rapport périodique | periodic report / service report |
| comité de suivi / réunion de pilotage | review meeting |
| gouvernance contractuelle | contract governance |
| responsable de contrat | contract manager |
| point de contact | point of contact |
| comité de pilotage / de direction | steering committee / governance committee |
| personnel clé | key personnel |
| obligation de moyens | best-efforts / reasonable-care obligation |
| obligation de résultat | strict obligation / obligation to achieve a specific result |

### Legal and Commercial Terms

| French | English |
|---|---|
| durée initiale | initial term |
| reconduction / renouvellement | renewal |
| reconduction tacite | automatic renewal (avoid "tacit renewal") |
| avis de non-renouvellement | notice of non-renewal |
| résiliation pour convenance | termination for convenience |
| résiliation pour manquement / faute | termination for cause / default |
| manquement grave | material breach |
| délai / mise en demeure | cure period / remedy period |
| changement de contrôle | change of control |
| préavis | notice period |
| force majeure | force majeure |
| limitation de responsabilité | limitation of liability |
| plafond de responsabilité | liability cap |
| dommages exclus / indirects | excluded losses / indirect and consequential damages |
| indemnité / clause d'indemnisation | indemnity |
| période de garantie | warranty period |
| garantie des vices | defects liability |
| assurance responsabilité civile professionnelle (RC Pro) | professional indemnity insurance |
| assurance responsabilité civile | public liability insurance |
| assurance cyber | cyber liability insurance |
| propriété intellectuelle antérieure / postérieure | background IP / foreground IP |
| licence retour / rétrocession | licence-back |
| données à caractère personnel | personal data |
| traitement de données | data processing |
| sous-traitant (au sens du RGPD) | data processor |
| responsable de traitement | data controller |
| accord de sous-traitance / contrat de traitement | data processing agreement (DPA) |
| sous-traitant ultérieur | sub-processor |
| sous-traitance (contrat) | subcontracting |
| sous-traitant | subcontractor |
| transmission en cascade / flow-down | flow-down |

### Service Agreement Section Headings

| French | English |
|---|---|
| OBJET | PURPOSE / SCOPE |
| RÉMUNÉRATION ET PAIEMENT | FEES AND PAYMENT |
| DURÉE ET RÉSILIATION | TERM AND TERMINATION |
| OBLIGATIONS DU PRESTATAIRE | PROVIDER'S OBLIGATIONS |
| OBLIGATIONS DU CLIENT | CLIENT'S OBLIGATIONS |
| RÉVERSIBILITÉ | HANDOVER / TRANSITION |
| ASSURANCES | INSURANCE |
| SOUS-TRAITANCE | SUBCONTRACTING |
| CONFIDENTIALITÉ | CONFIDENTIALITY |
| PROTECTION DES DONNÉES | DATA PROTECTION |
| RESPONSABILITÉ / LIMITATION DE RESPONSABILITÉ | LIABILITY / LIMITATION OF LIABILITY |

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## Notes

- **"Mesures conservatoires"** / **"référé"**: Interim protective measures under French
  civil procedure, typically before the juge des référés. Translate as "injunctive
  relief" or "interim relief" depending on the specific remedy.
- **"Exécution en nature"** / **"exécution forcée"**: Civil-law equivalent of specific
  performance — compelling a party to perform its obligation.
- **"Obligation de moyens" vs "obligation de résultat"**: Fundamental French-law
  distinction with no direct English equivalent. "Moyens" = reasonable-care / best-
  efforts obligation without guaranteed outcome; "résultat" = strict liability to achieve
  a specific outcome. Translate with context as appropriate.
- **"Réversibilité"**: A French-law concept covering the process of transitioning
  services back to the client or to a new provider at contract end. Translate as "exit
  plan" / "disengagement plan" or "exit assistance", not literal "reversibility".
- **"Cahier des charges"**: Depending on context → "specifications", "statement of work",
  or "terms of reference".
- **"Clause pénale"**: Formally "penalty clause" under French law, but in English
  translation it must be rendered as "liquidated damages" (or "service credits" in SLA
  context) — "penalty" is unenforceable under English law.
- **"Résiliation" vs "résolution" vs "rescision"**: "Résiliation" = termination (ex nunc,
  prospective); "résolution" = rescission for non-performance (ex tunc, retroactive);
  "rescision" = narrower, typically for lesion. Translate precisely.
