RÉSUMÉ Mots-clés : Soins psychiatriques, Sans consentement, Demande d’un tiers. The true legal revolution in terms of psychiatric care was the so-called Esquirol Act of 30th June 1838, which laid the groundwork for the Act on modern psychiatry. This founding legislation was in place for an exceptionally long time, since it was reformed for the first time on 27th June 1990 and more recently with the Acts of 5th July 2011 and 27th September 2013. If the fundamental achievements of the Esquirol Law remain, these reforms have significantly complicated the legal framework of the modalities, for the patients, of entering and leaving the scheme. This growing complexity is related to the goal of all of these legislative changes, which seek to ensure the preservation of public order against the dangers of some patients while protecting the individual freedoms of patients against arbitrary internment.