text: Kosovo: The hijab was banned in public schools and universities or government buildings.
  France: In 2006, a French Muslim man sought an annulment on the grounds that his bride (also Muslim) turned out not to be a virgin. She denied having misled him, but did not contest the appeal, which was duly granted. However, in 2009, French justice minister Rachida Dati ordered the government to appeal this decision (on the grounds that an important element of French public policy was at issue). The appeals court reversed the judgment. As explained by writer Ronald Sokol, "The government argued that the wife's virginity was not an essential condition because her unchaste past has no effect on married life. The judges agreed. Even if she had lied, they said, it did not matter, as a woman's lies about her past love affairs are not matters essential to her married life. In short, a woman's past is her own." It became known as the "Virginity Lie" case.
  Spain: In Spain a bill decriminalizes abortion, making it legally accessible to women in the first 14 weeks of the pregnancy.
  Denmark: Succession to the throne is by a change in the law in 2009 governed by absolute primogeniture.