This page has been automatically translated. Please refer to the page in French if needed.
Case Law
A LinkedIn profile can prove the quality of a cautionary note
Publié le null - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
Skills communicated publicly on LinkedIn (education, work experience, skills) can identify someone as an informed guarantor who cannot be the subject of a warning by the bank about the potential for excessive debt. This was stated by the Court of Cassation in a judgment delivered by the Commercial Chamber on 9 November 2022.
One bank made a loan to a business, and the bank manager provided a 50% guarantee. As the business was put into receivership, the bank summoned the manager for payment. The latter criticizes the bank for not having complied with its warning obligation (applies where the commitment is not suited to the surety’s financial capacities or there is a risk of indebtedness arising from the granting of the guaranteed loan) and requests to be relieved of its guarantee commitment.
The Court of Appeal ruled that the manager was indeed a well-informed guarantor because of the business skills he publicly states he has on his LinkedIn profile. In addition, he indicated that he had a management master’s degree and executive experience with a renowned retail group.
The Court of Cassation followed the reasoning of the Court of Appeal and held that the manager was capable of assessing the risks inherent in the guarantee and therefore in the fact that he was guarantor of the repayment of the loan. The skills mentioned in his LinkedIn profile attested to this. The manager was thus a guarantor and the bank therefore did not have to exercise any duty of caution.