Macroscopic failure of a material happens generally through the coalescence of micro-defects rather than the catastrophic propagation of a single crack. It is therefore advisable to study fracture problems in which many cracks interact. The case of en-passant crack pairs (EP-cracks), two parallel and offset cracks approaching each other by propagating through their inner tips, presents a marked interest as these cracks can be found in various natural (bones, oceanic rifts,..) or industrial (civil engineering,...) situations. Despite the large variety of scales and materials in which these cracks are observed, their trajectories present a remarkably self-similar hook-shape. This shape result from the crack-crack interaction, first repulsive before becoming attractive, and its origin is poorly understood. In particular, the initial repulsive behaviour seems to question the validity of linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM). In this thesis, we first studied EP-cracks in the LEFM framework. The study of the initial kink angle and the simulation of crack paths showed against all expectations that LEFM is able to reproduce qualitatively the hook-shaped paths. Precise predictions of specific characteristics, such as the magnitude of repulsion, requires a more refined model of the material behaviour. We then used a phase-field model to augment the material representation. As they are strongly influenced by the characteristic length scale of the phase-field, the new simulated trajectories indicate that it is possible to develop a more quantitatively correct model. An attractive prospect is to link this characteristic length to the material microstructure.