Decree

Decree is an order by a head of state or government that has the force of law.

In some countries, other words are used for such orders; one example is the executive orders of the president of the United States.

The word decree is often used as a derogative term for any authoritarian decision. See also rule by decree.

Imperial Decree

An imperial decree is a decree issued by a sovereign ruler, such as an emperor, king, or similarly styled person. Imperial decrees from monarchial times differ from decrees issued by heads of state in modern democracies in that they embodied a force of law that was subject to no limitations either by other branches of government, or through the democratic process.

France

See Government of France.

The word decree (décret) is used as a legal term to describe the most important executive decisions from the President or Prime Minister of France. Those decisions must conform to the Constitution and statutes of France, and it is possible to sue for their cancellation in the Conseil d'État.

Outside of the exceptional reserve powers of the President (exercised only once so far), the executive can issue decrees in areas that the Constitution grants to the responsibility of Parliament only if the a law authorizes it to do so. In other cases, the decrees are illegal and will be cancelled by the Conseil d'État, should somebody sue. There exists a procedure for the Prime Minister to issue ordinances in such areas, but this procedure requires the expressed consent of Parliament.

Decrees of the Prime Minister are of the two following kinds:

simple decrees (décrets simples);
decrees in the Council of State (décrets en Conseil d'État), when a statute mandates the advisory consultation of the Conseil d'État.

Sometimes, people refer to décrets en Conseil d'État improperly as décrets du Conseil d'État. This would imply that it is the Conseil d'État that takes the decree, whereas the power of decreeing is restricted to the President or Prime Minister; the role of the administrative sections of the Conseil is purely advisory.

Decrees may be classified into:

regulations, which may be:
* application decrees (décrets d'application), each of which must be specifically authorized by one or more statutes to determine some implementation conditions of this or these statutes; these constitute secondary legislation and are roughly equivalent to British statutory instruments;
* autonomous regulations (règlement autonomes), which may be taken only in areas where the Constitution of France does not impose statute law (passed by the legislative branch); these constitute primary legislation;
particular measures, such as the nomination of high-level civil servants.

Only the prime minister may issue regulatory or application decrees. Presidential decrees are generally nominations, or exceptional measures where law mandates a presidential decree, such as the dissolution of the French National Assembly and the calling of new legislative elections.

Decrees are published in the Journal Officiel de la République Française.