“Outstanding” hearings, new summons... What you need to know about the appeal trial after the collapses on rue d'Aubagne

After a first trial at the end of 2024 on this tragedy which left 8 dead six years earlier, an appeal procedure begins on Monday November 2. The problem of substandard housing in Marseille will once again be dissected.

No less than seven weeks of hearings. This is the announced duration of the appeal trial for the fatal collapses of rue d'Aubagne, which opens Monday, November 2 in Marseille, under the aegis of the Aix-en-Provence Court of Appeal. At the request of the prosecution, which has appealed several convictions, the hearing will see new people summoned to the bar in this case which had scandalized the Marseille city and the rest of the country. Here's what you need to know about this new, highly scrutinized procedure.

Hearings are scheduled for November 2 to December 19

The appeal trial for the collapses of rue d’Aubagne must therefore be held in Marseille from November 2 to December 19. The deadline is important for the victims' relatives, who are waiting for responsibilities to be fully established and for the legal decisions to reflect the tragedy.

As a reminder, on November 5, 2018, the buildings located at numbers 63 and 65 rue d'Aubagne collapsed, killing eight people. The disaster has since become the symbol of poor housing and the deterioration of certain buildings in the city center. Around a hundred civil parties were formed in this case. The trial will take place in the so-called “non-standard trial” room (PHN) located in the Muy barracks in Marseille.

The prosecution appealed several convictions

At the end of the first instance trial, the Marseille criminal court handed down ten convictions in July 2025, notably against Julien Ruas, the former deputy mayor of Marseille in charge of risk prevention. The latter was sentenced to two years in prison for negligence. Expert architect Richard Carta was found guilty of “gross misconduct” for botching a visit to the building a few days before its collapse.

The co-owner of the building located at 65, lawyer for the trustee, Xavier Cachard was also found guilty, as was the SARL Soyorem, represented by his nephew and of which he was the majority partner. He was sentenced to four years in prison, two of which were suspended, the heaviest sentence handed down by the court in this case. Faced with these sentences, which were generally lower than those requested, the prosecution appealed for 15 of the 16 convictions. New people are also summoned in order to shed light on the chain of responsibilities.

The decision rendered in 2027

If the hearings end at the very end of the year, we will have to wait before knowing any new sentences. During the first trial, the Marseille court delivered its judgment after a period of just over six months. Meanwhile, the issue of compensation for victims remains a thorny issue. Not all of them have yet been compensated, as La Provence recalled, and civil interest decisions will be rendered after the decision of the appeal trial, at the earliest in September 2027.