The 51-year-old man was fined under article 215 of France’s civil code, which states married couples must agree to a “shared communal life”.

A judge has now ruled that this law implies that “sexual relations must form part of a marriage”.

The rare legal decision came after the wife filed for divorce two years ago, blaming the break-up on her husband’s lack of activity in the bedroom.

A judge in Nice, southern France, then granted the divorce and ruled the husband named only as Jean-Louis B. was solely responsible for the split.

But the 47-year-old ex-wife then took him back to court demanding 10,000 euros in compensation for “lack of sex over 21 years of marriage”.
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The ex-husband claimed “tiredness and health problems” had prevented him from being more attentive between the sheets.

But a judge in the south of France’s highest court in Aix-en-Provence ruled: “A sexual relationship between husband and wife is the expression of affection they have for each other, and in this case it was absent.

“By getting married, couples agree to sharing their life and this clearly implies they will have sex with each other.”

Can you imagine the shitstorm that would occur if MEN could start suing their wives and ex-wives over lack of sex?  I mean, c’mon.  Women with-hold sex CONSTANTLY, especially after marriage.  Why is it some poor French guy gets the hammer dropped on him for not putting out?  Can he sue his ex-wife for damages over all the money of his she spent during their marriage?

I’d like to see someone try suing a girl for not putting out after paying for a nice date.  Isn’t there an implicit non-verbal contract there somewhere?

Remind me never to get married in France.

A survey by one of France’s oldest and most reputable polling and market research organisations has challenged the myth of the French lover.

More than three-quarters of Gallic couples have bad sex lives, the Institute for Public Opinion found.

More than one in three women said they had used excuses such as headaches, tiredness or children being nearby to get out of having sex.

Nearly one in six men said they had also made similar excuses.

France has long enjoyed a reputation for romance and the French have traditionally thought of themselves as great lovers, more amorous and flirtatious than most other Europeans, especially the British, the BBC’s David Chazan reports from Paris.

But the survey of more than 1,000 French adults, who answered revealing questions about their sex lives, suggests the nation that gave its name to the French kiss could be suffering a loss of libido, he says.

However, help may be at hand, our correspondent adds. The pharmaceutical corporation which commissioned the survey says it is going to launch an information campaign this month for French couples who want to improve their sex lives.

Not sure how accurate this is.  Could be that SINGLE people in France are still getting all Caligula on a regular basis.  Who knows?  But I guess if you’re going to analyze the sex lives of COUPLES, you’ll probably see the same level of disinterest in their partners no matter what country you’re in.