The definition of natural law has the ‘free communication of opinions and opinions’ contained in Article 11 of the Declaration of Human Rights, on which the French legislature relied to redigest the Law of 29 July 1881, is very close to the objective definition of ‘freedom of expression’ embodied in the modern text of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Increasingly, disputes based on the provisions of the 1881 Act are confronted with the view of the ECtHR of the Freedom of Expression. The French provisions laid down in French law on newspapers and periodicals in the foreign language or of foreign origin, or on the offence of offense to the foreign Head of State, have thus been found to be incompatible with the ECHR. While other articles of the 1881 Law have not yet been used as proof of the Convention, the previous case-law of the ECtHR suggests that they would not remain within its analysis, with the restrictive approach to which it envisages restrictions on freedom of expression. Thus, it is interesting to investigate the offense to the President of the Republican, the release of false news, the rules on investigative secrecy, racial hatred or insulting and defamation, the penal accountability of the directors of publication and the civil procedure under Article 10 of the Convention. ■