The ECHR Has Validated the Current French Law on the End-of-life
PRESS RELEASE – 11th February 2026
Alliance VITA approves the decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) which has recognised the validity of the current French legislation on the end of life.
Several French petitioners united through the Swiss Dignitas association had applied to the European Court of Human Rights on the issue of whether or not the French legislation prohibiting assisted suicide and medical assistance in dying is a violation of the fundamental rights of the European Convention of Human Rights.
Considering that they are not victims (whether direct, indirect, or potential) of any violation of the European Convention of Human Rights, the European Court of Human Rights rejected their claim.
The Court moreover seized the opportunity of this decision to recall that the French prohibitions with respect to assisted suicide or medical assistance in dying: “do not reveal any apparent violation of the rights and liberties guaranteed by articles 2, 3, 9 and 14 of the Convention”. The French legislation contravenes neither the right to live, nor the prohibition of torture, nor the freedom of thought, of conscience and religion nor the prohibition of discrimination of the Convention.
According to Tudgual Derville, spokesman for Alliance VITA, a third-party association involved in the context of the claim:
“This decision shows that the current French legislation is considered to be perfectly compliant with the European Court of Human Rights. This is yet another reason for not interfering with the French legal framework governing the end of life, which today protects the most vulnerable”.
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