Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers

Mr. Pierre-Yves MAURON
President

Mrs. Hanna VEUILLET-KALA
Vice-President

Mr. Guillaume MEIER
Director

The mission of the Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers (hereinafter "the Conciliation Commision") is to allow parties bound by a lease contract or a non-agricultural usufructuary lease contract, involving an immovable property (e.g. flat, business premises), to reach an agreement in the conflict opposing them. Reaching a settlement at this stage avoids bringing the case before the Tribunal des baux et loyers and embarking on a longer formal proceeding.

The Conciliation Commission intervenes in particular in proceedings concerning:

• The amount of rent (setting of the initial rent, increase or decrease)
• The termination of the lease
• The lease extension requests
• The request for works with or without a rent deposit
• The rent reduction requests for a defect
• The claims for payment (e.g. due to late payment of rent)
• The rental security

A collegial and multidisciplinary jurisdiction

The Rental and lease conciliation Commission is made of 3 judges. The tenured judge is assisted by an assessor judge representing the tenant advocacy organisations and by an assessor judge representing the landlord advocacy organisations.

The Commission’s Office can be reached by telephone at the indicated opening hours for questions relating to a pending proceeding. It does not provide legal advice.

A brief overview of actions to take

In principle, any dispute relating to a lease contract or a usufructuary lease contract involving immovable property, is subject to a prior attempt of conciliation and must therefore be submitted to the Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers.

There are however some exceptions which are provided for in articles 198 and 199 CPC (for example, summary proceedings in clear cases, interim measures, action for release from a debt).

The proceeding brought before the Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers is free of charge.

Step 1: bring the case before the Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers

You must write your application in French and send it to the Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers by post or by handing it directly at the desk of the commission or at the Greffe universel.

Your request must indicate against whom it is directed, what you wish to obtain (your conclusions) and state as clearly as possible the object of the dispute (what you want and why). The request must be signed.

You may use the ad-hoc forms for your request.

Access to application forms

Step 2: attend the conciliation hearing

In principle, within 2 months of sending your request, you are summoned to a conciliation hearing during which the conciliating judge, accompanied by 2 assessor judges, seeks to informally find an agreement between you and your opponent.

Step 3: reach an agreement or continue the proceedings in court

If an agreement is reached, the proceeding is terminated with a conciliation report which is equivalent to a judgment.

On the other hand, if the conciliation attempt fails, the proceeding before the Commission ends in one of the following three ways:

• The Commission de conciliation issues an authorisation to proceed on the basis of which the proceedings may continue before the Tribunal des baux et loyers.
• The Commission de conciliation may submit to the parties a proposal for a judgment, where the amount in dispute does not exceed Fr. 5'000.- or in disputes related to a lease contract or a usufructuary lease contract for residential or commercial premises if they concern the deposit of rent, the protection against unfair rent, the protection against termination, or the extension of the rent lease or the usufructuary lease.
• The Commission de conciliation may, at the request of the plaintiff, render a decision, if the amount in dispute does not exceed Fr. 2'000.-.