Facebook loses vital legal battle over nude painting

Facebook has lost a crucial legal battle in France as a court ruled the social network can be sued over its decision to remove the account of a user who posted a photo of a famous 19th-century nude painting.

The ruling by the Paris appeals court could set a legal precedent in France, where Facebook has more than 30m regular users. An appeal could go to the country’s highest court.

It means a French court can hear the case of Frederic Durand-Baissas, a 57-year-old Parisian teacher and art lover, whose account was suspended five years ago without prior notice.