By Joshua Kirby

A French court overturned a ruling that the family of Vincent Bollore had de facto control of Vivendi, quashing investor hopes that the billionaire might be forced into a full takeover of the media group following its four-way spinoff last year.

The country's highest court said Friday that a lower appeals court had made an error in ruling that the family's namesake Bollore holding company exerted de facto control over Vivendi.

"The appeals court, with different members, must make a new decision on the question of de facto control," the court said in its ruling.

The initial case was brought by a minority shareholder in Vivendi, which claimed that what it said was Bollore's de facto control over the group obliged the family company to make a takeover offer, despite it not holding a majority of the share capital. Bollore currently holds around 30% of Vivendi's issued stock, according to FactSet.

France's market regulator had earlier this year required Bollore to bid for full ownership of Vivendi, a decision based on the initial court ruling.

Shares in Vivendi dropped sharply last week when French daily Le Monde reported that the higher court would rule in favor of Bollore. Freeing the holding company from an obligatory takeover of Vivendi could save the family between 6 billion and 9 billion euros ($6.96 billion-$10.44 billion), according to estimates cited by Le Monde.

The legal battle comes after Vivendi at the end of 2024 completed a breakup of its core business into standalone entities. Studio group Canal+ was listed in London, while advertising group Havas was listed in Amsterdam and publishing firm Louis Hachette Group in Paris. The spinoff aimed to help the group avoid the so-called conglomerate discount, referring to the gap between a company's market value and that of the sum of its parts.

Write to Joshua Kirby at joshua.kirby@wsj.com; @joshualeokirby

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 28, 2025 11:21 ET (16:21 GMT)

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