Paris Court Rejects Emergency Request to Halt Shein's Operations in France; French Government Will Appeal
The French government announced on Friday, December 19, evening that it would appeal the ruling made by the Paris judicial court on the same day. The ruling rejected the emergency request made by the French government, which sought to temporarily block the operations of the Chinese fast-fashion platform Shein in France. The court held that requiring a comprehensive blockade of Shein was beyond the necessary scope to address the related risks and thus did not conform to the principle of proportionality, as the relevant illegal products had already been voluntarily removed from the platform and stopped from being sold. In addition to the civil ruling, the Paris prosecutor's office has initiated a criminal investigation into the case and referred it to the Office for Minors. The legal troubles of Shein are far from over.
According to AFP, in the statement released by the French government on Friday evening, it emphasized that the court did not adopt the requirements put forward by the state, i.e., to prevent "child-like pornographic dolls, Class A weapons, and illegal drugs" from being listed on the platform again.
The statement said: "Given the systemic risks posed by Shein's business model and at the request of the Prime Minister, the government will appeal the judgment in the coming days."
Previously, the French government had at least requested that the third-party merchant platform (marketplace) of Shein continue to be suspended, but this request was also not supported by the court.
The Court Acknowledges the Risk, but Considers Violations as 'Individual Cases'
Investigations revealed that the Shein platform had featured sexual toys resembling young girls, Class A controlled weapons, and prohibited medicines. In response to Shein's actions, the French government requested mandatory measures - a complete shutdown of the platform and strict conditions before resuming operations.
In its ruling, the Paris Judicial Court acknowledged that the presence of these goods constituted a serious harm to public order, protection of minors, and the health and safety of potential consumers and third parties. However, the court considered such violations as "individual cases" and pointed out that the platform had removed the relevant goods after being notified by the regulatory authorities.
Nevertheless, the court issued a "judicial injunction" to Shein, requiring it not to resell any items that could constitute pornography until an effective age verification mechanism is established.
The Court Says Shein's Response Was "Prompt and Strict"
In its ruling, the court noted that only "a few goods" on Shein's third-party platform were clearly illegal during this judicial procedure, while the platform had tens of thousands of items on sale simultaneously.
The judge stated that there was no evidence of "repeated, large-scale" listing of prohibited goods and commended Shein's "strict and prompt" measures taken after being notified in late October.
Shein was founded in China and is headquartered in Singapore. The group had previously voluntarily closed its third-party merchant platform in France in full.
Since November 5, Shein in France only sells its low-cost clothing series, mainly produced in China and made of synthetic materials. The company stated that this move was to conduct a "comprehensive audit" to fix the "gaps" in the platform.
Close sources of the case said that the third-party platform would not be immediately restored, but would be gradually restarted. The internal audit is still ongoing, and initially, only European and French sellers who have passed internal review will be allowed to rejoin.
Age Filtering Mechanism Becomes Core Controversy
During the trial on December 5, Shein's lawyer admitted that the platform faced technical difficulties in establishing an effective age filter system for adult content. Affected by the French incident, Shein has shut down the adult-oriented product category globally.
Shein had previously accused the platform of facing a "political and media siege." After the court's ruling was announced, the company issued a statement to AFP, welcoming the decision and stating that it would continue to cooperate with French authorities to strengthen internal regulatory processes, "to reach one of the most stringent standards in the industry."
The French government had previously requested that Shein continue to suspend its operations until it could guarantee effective prevention of similar prohibited goods being listed again, and required the establishment of strict age verification mechanisms for minors' access, with the relevant regulation to be handled by the French digital regulator Arcom.
The court adopted part of the government's demands regarding the age filtering for adult content, citing the need to avoid "serious consequences" for minors.
Criminal Investigation Still Ongoing
In addition to the civil ruling, Shein also faces a criminal investigation. The Paris prosecutor's office has filed a case and referred the investigation to the Office for Minors. This agency is also investigating multiple e-commerce platforms including AliExpress, Temu, Wish, and eBay.
Source: rfi
Original: toutiao.com/article/1851987913306115/
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