France’s groundbreaking « three strikes » law that would disconnect repeat Internet file-swappers has been overturned by the country’s Constitutional Council. « Innocent until proven guilty » still means something in France.
The French Constitutional Council has ripped into the new Création et Internet law which would disconnect repeat online copyright infringers, calling the basic premise unconstitutional. « Innocent until proven guilty » remains a central principle of French law, and it cannot be bypassed simply by creating a new nonjudicial authority. […]
There was no grieving from open Internet groups like La Quadrature du Net, which posted its response in the form of a picture.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/06/french-court-savages-3-strikes-law-tosses-it-out.ars