A 69-year-old French woman has won a case at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) after challenging the legal grounds of her divorce. The woman, identified as Ms. H.W., argued that courts should not blame a spouse for divorce just because they refuse to have sexual relations.

Her case started after French courts ruled that her decision to stop being intimate with her husband was the main reason for the breakdown of their marriage. The ECHR ruled in her favor, saying this decision violated her basic human rights, particularly her right to private and family life under European law.
The legal battle lasted nearly 10 years. The woman described the ruling as an important step in protecting consent in marriage. In its judgment, the court stated, “Marriage does not mean automatic consent to future sexual relations.” The ruling also emphasized that consent must be given freely for each interaction, considering the circumstances.

The woman and her husband had four children. They married in 1984, but problems started in 1992 after their first child was born. By 2002, she stopped being intimate with her husband. In 2012, after 28 years of marriage, she filed for divorce.
During the divorce process, she said her husband focused too much on his career and became difficult to live with. A French court awarded her their family home in 2013, ordering her husband to leave. Two years later, in 2015, she formally sued for divorce on the grounds of fault, accusing him of being aggressive and hurtful.

Now, with the ECHR ruling, the case has set a major legal precedent about personal rights in marriage.