The case concerns a Guinean national who claimed to be an unaccompanied minor upon arriving in France. After a forensic medical examination, which concluded that his age was over 18, his emergency care by child welfare services was terminated, leaving him without resources, accommodation, and food.
On 30 March 2020, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) issued an interim measure ordering France to provide the applicant with accommodation and food until the end of the COVID-19 lockdown.
In July 2020, the Youth Court ruled the applicant was no longer a child and ended his care, but the Court of Appeal overturned this decision and ordered care to continue until he reached majority.
The ECtHR ruled that France violated Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) by failing to act with the necessary diligence and provide clear and precise information during the dispute over the applicant’s status–when he should have been regarded as particularly vulnerable.
Read the full decision here.