The ongoing legal fight about the casino in Berck-sur-Mer will soon end up in France’s top administrative body, the Conseil d’État. The core of the argument involves who owns the casino building and whether the public service contract to run it is valid.
Jean Metz Fights Back After Casino Contract Voided by Lille Court
The dispute kicked off when Lille’s administrative court canceled three concession notices, questioning how the casino’s operations were granted. As a comeback, Jean Metz SAS, a branch of Groupe Partouche that owns the casino’s property, filed a third-party challenge and a detailed memo, as reported by G3 Newswire France. They claimed the interim judge had gone beyond his authority in a March 25 ruling. This decision had scrapped the public service delegation (DSP), a move the Lille court turned down again.
Jean Metz argued that the temporary judge should have limited the review to fair procedures and open competition. Instead, the company claimed, the court evaluated the legal status of the property and decided that the casino building, though privately owned, would become a public asset for the town when the contract ended, a conclusion Jean Metz challenges.
The company defended itself by saying that the casino building cannot be seen as a returnable asset because it was never public property and no special treatment was given during bidding. Jean Metz said that just having access to a working venue does not mean other bidders did not receive equal treated.
Legal Tensions Rise as High Court Set to Decide Property Fate
The Société du Grand Casino de Dinant kicked off the legal battle, claiming Jean Metz’s plan had some big problems. They said the way the building was offered up did not follow the rules about giving back public property. The court just decided that any property used to provide a public service has to go back to the government for free when the deal’s over, unless the contract says otherwise.
The court stressed that the 2005 contracts between the municipality, Jean Metz, and Groupe Partouche should be seen as one economic deal. It decided that Groupe Partouche, by tying the building to the concession’s success, agreed to give the property back to the municipality when the deal ended.
Even with these decisions, the municipality had already taken the issue to the Conseil d’État in April, asking for clarity on clashing judgments. While two earlier rulings backed Groupe Partouche’s claim to the property, the latest decision treats it as a public asset. The high court will now figure out the final status of the building, which was originally a bus terminal that has become a key point in the bigger legal fight.