The legal situation of La Gare (updated November 2025)

Last update : 11/16/2025

La Gare is a place of struggle against the CIGEO project, threatened soon with eviction. This article is written to clarify the current legal situation of this place and answer some questions.

On September 12, 2025, the expropriation compensation was paid to the bank account of SCI “Les Amis du Rail” which owned La Gare. Then the SCI (the owners of La Gare) had one month to leave the premises. ANDRA (National Radioactive Waste Management Agency) therefore had the right to take possession of it from October 13 : it requested that the keys be dropped off at the laboratory… No one went there of course.

Since the SCI was not physically occupying the premises that were managed by “Assoce Tomate” and there are no keys, the SCI therefore wrote to ANDRA to confirm that it was no longer in the premises, that there were no keys at this place and that it should turn to “Assoce Tomate” (the association managing La Gare).

The “Assoce Tomate” also sent a letter to say that it would not leave since no replacement space had been offered to it and that it was best placed to continue managing this place, which it has perfectly preserved for years.

On October 14, ANDRA sent its director Patrice Torrès with a bailiff to note that the premises were still occupied.

ANDRA immediately initiated an expulsion procedure against the SCI.

However, this does not mean that the police can evacuate La Gare whenever they wish.

The SCI was summoned to a hearing on November 5 at the court of Bar-le-Duc while we invited for a beautiful gustatory gathering, loud with percussions and friendly.

The SCI did indeed appear before the judge (the same one who deals with expropriations) but only to say that it was no longer concerned and that ANDRA made a mistake : it is the “Assoce Tomate” that they must expel but only after having offered him an amicable arrangement.

The lawyer of the struggle thus developed several arguments :

– a priority question of constitutionality (QPC) because the terms used in the law that allows eviction after expropriation are not clear;

– an assignment from the “Assoce Tomate” because it is it who claims to be occupying;

– the incompetence of the judge because it should not be the civil court that manages this expulsion but the administrative court, ANDRA largely falling under the public regime;

– the fact that in any case, the SCI’s summons was worthless since ANDRA did not mention any amicable arrangement they would have proposed to the SCI.

On the day of the hearing, the judge could only rely on the first two arguments because it takes time to process a QPC and it requires a whole regulatory process to assign the “Assoce Tomate”.

The judge therefore had to postpone the hearing to December 17 : date on which the “Assoce Tomate” will have its first hearing, which will serve among other things to set a schedule for the continuation of the legal procedure. There will then be a new adjournment for the “Assoce Tomate”.

As long as the justice has not issued an expulsion order, there can be no legal eviction from the former Luméville station. We will have more visibility on the date of eviction of La Gare after the hearing on December 17.

Frequently asked questions

Is it currently illegal to be on the field of La Gare ? Do we risk fines ?

No, there are currently no legal risks of just being on the ground. We will specify it on the site if the situation evolves.

Do the gendarmes have the right to enter La Gare grounds ? 

No, in the same way that the gendarmes do not have the right to expel La Gare, they do not have the right to enter it unless they have a document specifically authorizing them to do so, such as a search warrant. This does not prevent them, however, from trying to enter the grounds of La Gare illegally as has been observed several times (see the date of November 10 on La Gare’s info thread).

What are the repression practices in Bure ? 

A recently published brochure talks about the repression and surveillance practices known in Bure. If the subject interests you, it can be consulted on bureburebure.info (in french).

Should I prepare myself before coming to the area ? 

It’s always interesting to train to better react to road checks, identity checks, etc. The anti-repression team has published a legal brief that you can find here. If you have other questions regarding your visit to the area, you can always write to us. There are plenty of ways to contact people on site on the contacts page of bureburebure.info.

 

23/11/2025

Anti-repression

expropriations

La Gare

Lawsuit