Council of State (France)

In France, the Council of State (French: Conseil d'État; French pronunciation: ​[kɔ̃.sɛj de.ta]) is a body of the French national government that acts both as legal adviser of the executive branch and as the supreme court for administrative justice. Established in 1799 by Napoléon Bonaparte as a successor to the King's Council (Conseil du Roi), it is located in the Palais-Royal in Paris and is primarily made up of top-level legal officers. The Vice President of the Council of State is the highest-ranking civil servant in France.

The Conseil d'État, which is also a Grand Corps of the French State (grand corps de l'État), mainly recruits among the top ranking students graduating from the École nationale d'administration.

A General Session of the Council of State is presided over by the Prime Minister or, in his absence, the Minister of Justice. However, since the real presidency of the Council is held by the Vice-President, he usually presides all but the most ceremonial assemblies. This is also done for obvious reasons pertaining to the separation of powers. The current Vice-President is Jean-Marc Sauvé.

Other members of the Council include, by decreasing order of importance:

The Vice-President is appointed by Order-in-Council on the recommendation of the Minister of Justice and is selected from among the Council's department heads or councillors ordinary. Division heads are similarly appointed and selected from among the councillors ordinary.

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