On 1 April 2008, the high court of Lille (France) annulled a marriage on the grounds of "mistaken essential qualities of the spouse" in accordance with article 180 paragraph 2 [archive] of the French civil code. The woman was not a virgin at the time of the marriage ceremony, but had not admitted this to the man even though she knew that her status as a virgin was a determining factor in his motivation and consent to marry her. According to this initial court ruling, this was sufficient to declare the marriage annulled and therefore not to be recognized as a lawful marriage.
At the end of May 2008, a controversy ensued and several public figures, politicians, religious figures and intellectuals reacted to the decision. Following these events, the Minister of Justice Rachida Dati asked the Ministère public, namely the Procureur général of Douai, to make an appeal against the wishes of the couple. The appeal was lodged to the high court of Douai, on 3 June 2008.
On 17 November 2008, the judgment of the high court was declared null by the court of appeals. Since the annulment of the marriage was itself annulled, the final ruling was that the man and woman had been, and remained, legally married.