PARIS -- A French appeals court reversed a lower court decision to annul a marriage because the bride wasn't a virgin, effectively ruling that the Muslim couple is still married.

The Douai appeals court ruled that there was no proof that the woman, referred to in an e-mailed summary of the decision as "Madame Y," had lied about her past liaisons, and that, in any event, her past wasn't pertinent to her ability and willingness to form a family with the groom, referred to as "Monsieur X."

"A lie that doesn't pertain to an essential qualification isn't a valid rationale for annulling a marriage," the court found.

The case dominated newspaper coverage in France this spring, unifying the nation's governing Union for a Popular Movement party and the opposition Socialist Party, which both criticized the original court ruling, saying it had given too much weight to the religious sensitivities of the Muslim couple and represented a step backward for women's rights.

The annulment in April was first reported in a French legal magazine in May, and the couple's life has been in limbo since then, with a court in Lille, in northern France, blocking the annulment June 19. The case was heard again Sept. 22, without the presence of the couple, who now must seek a standard divorce.

The couple sought the annulment after the bride revealed just after the wedding that she had had sexual relations with other men.

The French civil code says a marriage can be annulled at the request of one or both parties if one of them misrepresented "essential qualities" about themselves. It doesn't define those qualities.

Justice Minister Rachida Dati at first defended the annulment, noting that it had come at the request of both parties. After facing criticism during a parliamentary debate in early June, she then asked state prosecutors to appeal the original ruling, leading to yesterday's ruling.

In 2004, the most recent year for which data is available, a total of 737 marriages were annulled in France, and 250 requests were rejected, according to the Justice Ministry.

It said the most common reasons for annulments were lying about previous marriages and nationality. Unlike divorce, an annulled marriage never existed in the eyes of the law.