In France, Italy, Belgium, and some other civil law countries, a circulaire (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

), circolare ( Italian) or omzendbrief ( Dutch) consists of a text intended for the members of a service, of an enterprise, or of an administration. Within the French and Belgian

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

, a ''circulaire'' originates from a

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

with the aim of giving an interpretation of a legal text or of a regulation (a decree, ''arrêté'' or Royal Order), with a view to applying such a regulation consistently. As such, a ''circulaire'' depends on the general principles of law, but carries more weight than mere administrative acts. ''Circulaires'' provide recommendations: they apply only to employees of the civil service. In certain cases, ''circulaires'' introduce new rules (''circulaires réglementaires''); such that under certain conditions one can appeal against abuse of power. The body of jurisprudence relating to ''circulaires'' has developed extensively. In principle, ''circulaires'' exist only to comment on existing law and to explain its application in concrete terms. The contentious side of ''circulaires'', of ''notes de services'' and of ''instructions'' has brought about several legal responses, varying according to several criteria and according to the type of text involved: * the regulatory nature of the text * the character of the measure of internal administration * the regulatory power of Ministers within their Departments * Government decisions The '' Conseil d'État'' (French) or ''

Raad van State The Council of State ( nl, ) is a constitutionally established advisory body in the Netherlands to the government and States General that officially consists of members of the royal family and Crown-appointed members generally having political, ...

'' (Dutch) thus far retains a unique criterion for determining whether to bring a disputed decision in front of a

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

: the imperative character of the decision.CE 18 December 2002, Section, Mme Duvignères, N° 233618
. See the conclusions of Madame Pascale Fombeur in RFDA 2003.280. If this condition applies, judges examine the legality of the text. This has been the case for the

Peeters directive The Peeters directive ( nl, Omzendbrief-Peeters, french: Circulaire Peeters), officially Circular BA 97/22 of 16 December 1997 concerning the use of languages in municipal councils of the Dutch language area, is a ''circulaire'' of the Flemish gove ...

in Belgium, restricting the use of French in officially Dutch-speaking municipalities.

References

{{Authority control Law of France Belgian legislation pt:Circular