Ley was born in Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg on 10 February 1903. He married Marie Weiler in 1931, and were married for 69 years until her death in 2000. The couple had one son, Nicolas, who was the Chief of Staff of the Luxembourg Army from 1984 to 1988.
After his marriage, Ley lived in the nearby town of Ettelbrück. He moved into a nursing home in Diekirch in December 2003, and later became Luxembourg’s first supercentenarian in February 2013. He died on 20 February 2013 at the age of 110 years, 10 days. His longevity record for Luxembourg would be broken in March 2018 by Germaine Litwinski-Kauffmann.
Ley was a private person, and no photographs were released publicly. Reports were published on his 109th and 110th birthdays, and after his death.
Ley’s age was verified by Anthony Croes-Lacroix and Stefan Jamin, and validated by the GRG on 1 March 2015.