France, May 28 -- A French court is expected to deliver its verdict on Wednesday in the country's biggest ever paedophilia case. Former surgeon Joel Le Scouarnec is accused of raping and sexually assaulting 299 children over more than two decades. He has admitted to all charges.

For many survivors, the case is not just about one man, but about the institutions that failed to protect them.

"If a trial with 300 victims doesn't change this blind society, then what will?" said one survivor in April, standing on the courthouse steps in Vannes, Brittany.

The trial has exposed the crimes of France's most prolific known child sex offender - and the gaps in the systems meant to stop him.

Le Scouarnec, now 74, is already serving a 15-year sente...