The Strasbourg court handed down its judgment in a case brought by 261 men and women of various nationalities who said they habitually and lawfully sell sex in France and argued that they were negatively affected by a ban introduced through legislation in 2016.

They alleged that the law seriously endangered the physical and mental integrity and health of individuals engaged in prostitution, and radically infringed on their right to respect for private life, insofar as this included the right to personal autonomy and sexual freedom.

Though their application relied on Articles 2 (right to life), 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment) and 8 (right to respect for private life), the court considered that it was more appropriate to examine all of the complaints under Article 8.

In its Chamber judgment, which is only available in French, the court unanimously held that there had been no violation of Article 8.

The court noted that the issue of sex work raised very sensitive moral and ethical questions, giving rise to different, often conflicting, views, and that there was still no general consensus among the member states of the Council of Europe, or even within the various international organisations examining the issue, on how best to approach it.

It then noted that recourse to the general and absolute criminalisation of the purchase of sexual acts as a means of combatting human trafficking was currently the subject of heated debate, giving rise to wide differences of opinion at both European and international level, without a clear position emerging.

The court concluded that the French authorities therefore had a wide margin of appreciation in legislating on sex work, though had a duty to keep its approach under constant review.

Amnesty International, which submitted a third-party intervention sharing its research findings from Ireland and other jurisdictions, expressed disappointment in the outcome.

“Our research has highlighted that laws supposedly intended to protect sex workers are in fact putting them at higher risk of abuse and violence, including rape and physical attacks,” Anna Błuś, Amnesty’s women’s rights researcher, said.

“Today’s judgment is a blow to the courageous sex workers who brought this case. We continue to stand alongside sex workers as they demand protection for their human rights and seek justice for rights violations perpetrated against their community and improve protection of their human rights going forward.”