Nicolas Sarkozy, the former French president, has been protected from criminal investigation by constitutional laws granting him presidential immunity while in office.

However, at midnight French local time on Friday, that immunity expired, opening him to investigation for any alleged scandals during his five year presidency.

Francois Hollande, the new president, would like to see the law scrapped permanently, but some experts say the regulation is aimed at protecting the presidency - not the president.

Al Jazeera's Peter Sharp reports from Paris.