The action targets shares in Google France held by Google International and was requested by Google Russia through its court-appointed judicial administrator.

The move marks a rare effort by Russian authorities to use legal mechanisms to pursue the overseas assets of Western companies, amid tensions over proposals in Europe to use frozen Russian assets.

Separately, Russia’s central bank is suing Brussels-based financial services firm Euroclear in a Moscow court over Russian assets held there.

The French bailiff declined to comment.

Google, the administrator of Google Russia and the French government did not respond to repeated requests for comment from Reuters.

The bailiff’s orders show the action is based on three rulings issued between 2024 and 2025 by Moscow arbitration courts, which operate under international commercial law.

William Julie, a lawyer representing the liquidator at French law firm WJ Avocats, said a Russian tribunal found Google guilty of making an illegal dividend payment in 2021 worth about 10 billion roubles ($126 million).

Meanwhile, Julie said the Russian liquidator is also seeking enforcement of the rulings in Spain, Turkey and South Africa.

Google, whose parent Alphabet has a market value of around $3.8 trillion, has faced multiple fines from Moscow.

In a related development, Google Russia filed for bankruptcy in 2022 after authorities seized its bank accounts, months after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Google can challenge temporary freeze

The French bailiff’s order imposes a temporary freeze, and French law requires lawyers to seek formal recognition of the foreign rulings within one month or the measure will lapse.

Julie said the necessary documents would be filed with the court in the coming days and that Google France had been notified.

The Paris Judicial Court will then decide whether to grant recognition and enforcement authorization for the foreign arbitration decisions, a process Julie said could take up to 18 months.

Google can contest the temporary freeze before an enforcement judge.

If recognition and enforcement are approved, the frozen funds could be seized to satisfy the arbitration court judgments, Julie added.