Regulated activities and contracts · France and Switzerland : separate country-labelled rules
First-demand guarantee: review the undertaking
A demand under an independent guarantee requires the undertaking, demand conditions, expiry and documents actually presented. A guarantee and suretyship are not interchangeable labels. French rules and Swiss classification must be checked separately. The document comparison does not decide the Swiss legal character from the phrase 'first demand' alone or promise that every compliant-looking demand must be paid without further examination.
- Signed guarantee instrument
- Independence and underlying debt
- Demand conditions
- Dates and claimed exceptions
- Official texts cited
- Sources checked on
- Drafted with AI assistance, our method
General legal information with official references and dated checks. It is not personalised advice: for a decision that commits you, have your situation checked by a qualified professional.
Julie by AlphaDeep
Is the obligation independent or accessory?
French Civil2321 defines autonomous guarantee;2288 concerns surety on principal default. Compare mechanism and content, not title alone.
Read the referencesYour question concerns “First-demand guarantee: review the undertaking”. I can help organise the facts and records. Which document have you received or prepared, and is this a French or Swiss matter?
3 free questions at signup. Avoid names and sensitive information.
Which guarantee instrument was signed?
Keep complete wording, parties and versions. The first-demand label alone does not determine classification.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
Is the obligation independent or accessory?
French Civil2321 defines autonomous guarantee;2288 concerns surety on principal default. Compare mechanism and content, not title alone.
Which conditions trigger the demand?
Match claimant, sum, records and agreed mode. The underlying invoice is not necessarily the only relevant document.
Which records are still missing from your file?
Indicate which records you have. The result identifies gaps and prepares a complete question for Julie, without requiring an account.
Fictional example · Your preparation
Point to complete: Dates and claimed exceptions. Identify effect, expiry, cap and receipt. The worksheet calculates no deadline without the exact instrument.
- Signed guarantee instrument
- Record available
- Independence and underlying debt
- Record available
- Demand conditions
- Record available
- Dates and claimed exceptions
- Needs checking
- Records indicated
- 3 / 4
- Which dates and limits are written?
This worksheet organises records; it does not establish admissibility, entitlement or a procedural outcome.
Which dates and limits are written?
Identify effect, expiry, cap and receipt. The worksheet calculates no deadline without the exact instrument.
Which documents answer which questions?
| Record or information | Issue to check |
|---|---|
| Signed guarantee instrument | Keep complete wording, parties and versions. The first-demand label alone does not determine classification. |
| Independence and underlying debt | French Civil2321 defines autonomous guarantee;2288 concerns surety on principal default. Compare mechanism and content, not title alone. |
| Demand conditions | Match claimant, sum, records and agreed mode. The underlying invoice is not necessarily the only relevant document. |
| Dates and claimed exceptions | Identify effect, expiry, cap and receipt. The worksheet calculates no deadline without the exact instrument. |
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
Can every underlying defence be raised against a French autonomous guarantee?
2321 has a distinct framework with manifest fraud, abuse and collusion reservations. Do not treat it as ordinary surety.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
What Swiss distinction requires separate analysis?
CO 111 third-party performance and492 accessory surety differ;18 interpretation prevents incorrect names deciding content. These statutes do not classify every actual instrument automatically.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
Which official provision helps explain this situation?
La garantie autonome est l'engagement par lequel le garant s'oblige, en considération d'une obligation souscrite par un tiers, à verser une somme soit à première demande, soit suivant des modalités convenues.
In plain English: 2321 has a distinct framework with manifest fraud, abuse and collusion reservations. Do not treat it as ordinary surety.
What should precede an answer to the demand?
Compare instrument, received demand, conditions and chronology promptly as appropriate. A disputed debt alone establishes no manifest abuse.
What does the guarantee grid deliver?
It separates classification, trigger and dates. It validates no call and issues no banking instruction.
What other questions arise in this file?
Is the obligation independent or accessory?
French Civil2321 defines autonomous guarantee;2288 concerns surety on principal default. Compare mechanism and content, not title alone.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
Which dates and limits are written?
Identify effect, expiry, cap and receipt. The worksheet calculates no deadline without the exact instrument.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
Can every underlying defence be raised against a French autonomous guarantee?
2321 has a distinct framework with manifest fraud, abuse and collusion reservations. Do not treat it as ordinary surety.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
What should precede an answer to the demand?
Compare instrument, received demand, conditions and chronology promptly as appropriate. A disputed debt alone establishes no manifest abuse.
Code civil art.2321Code civil art.2288220 : Art. 111220 : Art. 492220 : Art. 18Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1
Which official references should you consult?
- Code civil art.2321Légifrance
- Code civil art.2288Légifrance
- 220 : Art. 111Fedlex
- 220 : Art. 492Fedlex
- 220 : Art. 18Fedlex
- Conseil fédéral26février2020, rapport cautionnements flotte maritime, §5.2.1Source officielle
Texts cited last checked: 1 November 2026