Ruling Postponed on Strauss-Kahn Investigation PARIS - An appeals court in northern France delayed a ruling Wednesday on whether to halt its investigation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund who was ensnared in an inquiry into a prostitution ring that organized elite libertine sex parties. The court in Douai postponed its decision until Dec. 19 on an appeal from Mr. Strauss-Kahn's lawyers. They had argued that the investigation of the former banker's participation in libertine sex parties from Paris to Washington was flawed because he was unaware that prostitutes were involved and that investigators had failed to turn over all their information on the inquiry. The appeal also involves several other men who are suspects in procuring prostitutes for elite sex parties, including René Kojfer, who was in charge of public relations for the Hotel Carlton in Lille, and Jean-Christophe Lagarde, an official in France's national police force. Nine people are under investigation on charges of organized pandering and, in some cases, fraud. Prostitution is legal in France but pandering is not. Last October, the prosecutors office in Lille dropped charges of rape against Mr. Strauss-Kahn after a prostitute who participated in a sex party in Washington withdrew her complaint. If the court denies Mr. Strauss-Kahn's appeal, his lawyers could turn to other legal avenues, including a higher court in France and the European Court of human rights. Lawyers for Mr. Strauss-Kahn and other suspects in the case have essentially argued that lust is not a crime and that none of the men profited from the prostitution ring.