The European Court of Human Rights has ordered France to pay the woman damages of 10,000 euros (£7,446; $14,522) and 14,528 euros in costs.
Nine other European countries allow homosexuals to adopt children. The court pointed out that: "French law allowed single persons to adopt a child, thereby opening up the possibility of adoption by a single homosexual."
The European Court of Human Rights was critical of the French judiciary's emphasis on "the lack of a paternal referent in the household."
The court indicated that the reference to the applicant's homosexuality had been "if not explicit, at least implicit."
The case was tried before the European Court of Human Rights in December 2002, and a spokesman on behalf of the court claimed that it was the first such ruling against one of the 47 members of the Council of Europe.
