Woman Wins Appeal in Divorce Case: European Court Overrules French Decisio
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that a woman’s refusal to engage in sexual relations with her husband should not be considered a fault in divorce proceedings. This decision overturns a previous French court ruling that had deemed the woman at fault for the couple’s divorce due to her cessation of sexual activity.
The case involved a 69-year-old French woman, identified as HW, who had been married since 1984 and had four children. She petitioned for divorce in 2012, citing health issues and her husband’s abusive behavior as reasons for the breakdown of their marriage. In 2019, a French court of appeal ruled against her, stating that her refusal to have sex constituted a breach of marital duties.
The ECHR found that this earlier judgment violated HW’s right to respect for private and family life under the European Convention on Human Rights. The court emphasized that consent is paramount in sexual relations and that imposing a notion of marital duties that undermines sexual freedom and bodily autonomy is unacceptable.
This landmark ruling has been hailed by women’s rights groups in France, who argue that enforcing marital duties can perpetuate sexual servitude and intimidation. The decision reinforces that there is no legal obligation for spouses to have sexual relations and highlights the criminality of marital rape in France.