Lyon, 1881. Architect Pierre Bossan is putting the finishing touches to the Fourvière Basilica; Antoine Gailleton (a prominent surgeon) has been mayor of Lyon since April and Léon Delaroche is in the process of changing the format and price of his Lyon-based newspaper.

From now on, Le Progrès, sold for one ‘sou’, will be a broadsheet…

In the autumn of that same year, Louis Paul CHAINE was admitted as a notary. On 1 October, he took over the THIAFFAIT Practice, located at No. 15 rue Saint-Dominique, which was shortly to become rue Emile Zola. He was the tenth notary to head up this practice, which was first set up in 1697 and was very well known in Lyon and the surrounding area. At the age of 30, Louis Paul CHAINE had already distinguished himself while studying under the Dominican Fathers in Oullins and later in his legal studies; he had also married some months earlier. A cheerful man, though thoughtful and hardworking, CHAINE helped the Practice to grow, quickly winning the respect of his clients and colleagues. He was twice elected Chairman of the Compagnie des Notaires de l’Arrondissement de Lyon.


On 5 July 1913, he was succeeded by his son, Jean CHAINE. A Doctor of Laws, with a degree in humanities, a keen sportsman and a lover of the arts, Jean CHAINE was also a painter and musician in his free time. When, in August 1914, he was mobilised with his infantry regiment, he left the Practice in his father’s hands for five years. He returned in 1919, having been decorated with the Légion d'Honneur medal for military service and awarded several citations.

After his return, he developed the Practice substantially, particularly in the area of Company Law. A handsome man, warm, communicative, brilliant and demanding, he was well-liked by clients and colleagues alike. Rigorous in his legal ethics, and preoccupied with changes in the notarial profession, he founded, along with several colleagues, the Association des Notaires de France which, by agreement with the Compagnie des Notaires de Paris, led to the creation of a national notarial organisation, the Conseil Supérieur du Notariat, of which he was initially Vice-Chairman and later Chairman.

Ever active, Jean CHAINE divided his time between the Practice, his national responsibilities, his role in local political life and…his ten children! Before long, his second son Louis was completing his own legal studies.

A Doctor of Laws, with a degree in humanities, graduate of the Ecole des Sciences Politiques (Higher School of Political Science), Louis CHAINE was admitted as a notary on 24 May 1950 and succeeded his father in the Practice. Like his father before him, he was in favour of expanding the Practice and was likewise involved in local politics and with professional bodies: he was a Councillor for the Rhône Department and Chairman of both the Conseil Supérieur du Notariat and the Union Internationale du Notariat. He remained available for his clients - who in many cases had been faithful to the Practice for several generations - nonetheless.