The case involved the renewal, in October 2021, of an assistance and advisory mission entrusted by the ARS Nouvelle-Aquitaine to two experts to support the recovery of the Guéret hospital center. The Financial Court of Appeal ruled that the commitment of the corresponding expenses should have proceeded from the signing of contracts by the hospital center's management, in its capacity as authorizing officer. Therefore, the ARS and its Director General cannot be considered to have incurred the establishment's funds, and the offense is not constituted.
The Court noted that this renewal, desired by the president of the supervisory board, the medical community of the establishment, and the Director General of the CHU de Limoges, responded to "the general interest attached to the resolution of persistent dysfunctions affecting the continuity of public hospital service operation."
The ARS Nouvelle-Aquitaine takes note of this decision, which clarifies the intent of the action undertaken with territorial stakeholders to ensure the continuity of hospital care in Creuse.
This is the first ruling by the Financial Court of Appeal concerning the offense of incurring expenses by an unauthorized person. It will be published in the Official Journal of the French Republic.
