2023 – The Marseille IHU cases

A media figure in the spotlight

From the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Didier Raoult, director of the IHU Méditerranée Infection, became a controversial figure, advocating the use of hydroxychloroquine as an effective treatment against the virus. Idolised by some and criticised by others, he quickly became a central figure in public debate.

But beyond the scientific controversies, the affair took a judicial turn. Several investigations and administrative reports called into question experimental practices carried out within the IHU, raising questions about the legal and ethical framework of these trials.

Loosely defined accusations

The proceedings against Didier Raoult and the IHU were based on several separate cases:

• October 2021: Didier Raoult was suspected of having carried out an unauthorised experiment on tuberculosis treatments, which led to serious complications for some patients.
• January 2022: his daughter, Dr Carcopino-Tusoli, filed a complaint against one of her father’s colleagues for “defamation and insults”.
• May 2023: a search of the IHU was carried out as part of an investigation into earlier studies deemed illegal, well before those conducted on Covid-19.
• June 2023: after the publication of a new study on hydroxychloroquine, sixteen learned societies denounced in Le Monde “the largest unauthorised therapeutic trial ever known”. A few days later, the ANSM (French medicines agency) announced that it was referring the matter to the courts.

Faced with this avalanche of criticism and investigations, Didier Raoult’s defence could only be methodical, dispassionate and purely legal.

A targeted legal strategy: law, not science

Didier Raoult chose to entrust his defence to Brice Grazzini and Vouland Avocats, favouring a technical and strategic approach.

Rather than entering into the scientific controversy, the firm opted for a strictly legal defence. The aim: to refocus the debate on the law, the application of the rules in force and the absence of any evidence establishing a proven criminal offence.

The judicial outcome: never convicted

Despite numerous investigations and high-profile proceedings, Didier Raoult has never been convicted of a criminal offence. This case perfectly illustrates the need for a rigorous defence, detached from public passions, especially when science and justice become intertwined.

➡ Read an article by France 3 on the case (in French): Link to the article