A Paris court rejected a request to suspend Shein’s site in France, calling it disproportionate, but issued an injunction on adult product sales.
PARIS: A French court has rejected the state’s request to suspend the Shein website in the country, deeming the measure disproportionate.
The Paris judicial court delivered its ruling on Friday after the Asian e-commerce giant removed illicit products from its platform.
French authorities had sought a three-month block after finding weapons, banned medications, and childlike sex dolls for sale.
They demanded the site only reopen if strict new measures to prevent repeat offences were implemented.
The court acknowledged a “serious harm to public order” from the sale of such items.
It found, however, that their sale had been “sporadic” and noted Shein had taken the products down.
The court issued an injunction ordering Shein not to resume selling certain sexual products without age-verification.
It did not grant the state’s request to at least suspend Shein’s marketplace for third-party vendors.
“Only certain products on the marketplace were identified, in these proceedings, as manifestly illegal,” the ruling stated.
Shein’s lawyers said the marketplace would not fully reopen immediately but would do so gradually.
The company acknowledged difficulties implementing an effective age filter for pornographic products.
Its adults-only sexual category will remain closed for now, as it has been worldwide since the November uproar.
The French government said it would appeal the court’s decision.
“Convinced of the systemic risk of the model linked to Shein, the government will appeal this decision,” a statement said.
Brussels requested formal information from Shein in November, which could lead to probes and fines.
EU finance ministers also agreed in December to impose a €3 duty on low-value imports from July 2026.
European retailers argue they face unfair competition from overseas platforms like Shein. – AFP
