By decision of 23 June 2016, the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OFPRA) ended the refugee status enjoyed by A., a Palestinian. A. requested the annulment of the decision and the French National Court of Asylum (CNDA) rejected his request on 20 July 2019. A. requested the referral of the case to the Constitutional Council, to assess the comformity of the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution with Article L.733-1-1 of the Code on the Entry and Residence of Aliens and the Right of Asylum (CESEDA) and of Articles L. 713-5 and L. 713-6 of the same code.

The Council of State ruled that, with regards to Article L. 733-1-1, pursuant to which the CNDA decided to hold the hearing without the presence of the public, considering the particular circumstances of the case, the privacy of individuals, the security and the confidentiality, there was no violation of the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. The Council of State further ruled that, with regards to Articles L. 713-5 and L. 713-6, the CNDA did refuse to grant a request for an inquiry to the judicial authority which was presented by A. The Council noted that it is the responsibility of the CNDA to seek all facts and information relevant to the decision and of the judicial authority to provide any new information available which could affect the decision. Under these conditions, the Council ruled that the contested provisions do not infringe the rights of the defence, equality before justice nor the right to a fair trial. Therefore the Council ruled that the questions raised are not new nor do they have a serious character, and therefore do not need to be referred to the Consitutional Council.