Brigitte Macron, France's first lady, has escalated her legal battle against two women who spread false claims that she was formerly a man, taking her case to the country's highest appeals court, the Court de Cassation. This move comes after the Paris appeals court on Thursday overturned earlier convictions against the women.

For years, misinformation about Macron's gender has circulated online, often accompanied by comments on her 24-year age difference with President Emmanuel Macron. The libel complaint was filed after a December 2021 YouTube video featured Amandine Roy, a self-proclaimed spiritual medium, interviewing Natacha Rey, a self-described independent journalist. In the four-hour video, Rey alleged that Brigitte Macron was once a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux (who is actually Brigitte Macron's brother) who changed gender and later married the future president. This conspiracy theory gained significant traction, including among US conspiracy theorists.

A lower court in September last year had initially ordered the two women to pay €8,000 in damages to Brigitte Macron and €5,000 to her brother. Brigitte Macron's lawyer, Jean Ennochi, confirmed that her brother is also appealing the dismissal of the charges to the Court de Cassation.