CELEX: 62002CJ0352
Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations
Failure to transpose Directive 2000/14/EC
Noise emission in the environment

By application lodged with the Court Registry on 2 October 2002, the Commission of the European Communities brought an action
under Article 226 EC for a declaration that, by failing to adopt or by failing to notify to it the laws, regulations and administrative
provisions necessary to comply with Directive 2000/14/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 May 2000 on the
approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the noise emission in the environment by equipment for use outdoors
(OJ 2000 L 162, p. 1), the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.
Legal background
Article 22(1) of Directive 2000/14 provides: Member States shall adopt and publish the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive
no later than 3 July 2001. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
Pre-litigation procedure
Having received no notification from the Hellenic Republic of the adoption of provisions transposing Directive 2000/14 and
having no other information enabling it to conclude that such provisions had been adopted, the Commission took the view that
the Hellenic Republic had not yet adopted those provisions and had, consequently, failed to fulfil its obligations under that
directive.
By letter of 19 October 2001, the Commission gave the Hellenic Republic formal notice to submit its observations within two
months of notification of that letter.
In the absence of a reply from the Greek authorities, the Commission, by letter of 21 March 2002, sent a reasoned opinion
to the Hellenic Republic, calling upon it to take the measures necessary to comply with Directive 2000/14 within two months
of notification of that opinion.
Since the Hellenic Republic did not respond, the Commission concluded that those measures had not been adopted and brought
the present action.
The failure to fulfil obligations
It is established that the Greek authorities failed to transpose Directive 2000/14 within the period laid down in the reasoned
opinion. Those authorities state that a ministerial decree bringing the Greek legislation into line with the directive is
to be adopted very soon.
However, the question whether a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations must be determined by reference to the legislative
situation prevailing in the Member State at the end of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion (see, for example, Case
C-147/00
Commission
v
France
[2001] ECR I-2387, paragraph 26).
Since no measure transposing Directive 2000/14 was adopted by the Greek authorities within the prescribed period, the action
brought by the Commission must be regarded as well founded.
Accordingly, it must be held that, by failing to adopt, within the prescribed period, the laws, regulations and administrative
provisions necessary to comply with Directive 2000/14, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article
22(1) of that directive.
Costs
Under Article 69(2) of the Rules of Procedure, the unsuccessful party is to be ordered to pay the costs if they have been
applied for in the successful party's pleadings. Since the Commission has applied for costs and the Hellenic Republic has
been unsuccessful, the latter must be ordered to pay the costs.
On those grounds,
THE COURT (Third Chamber)
hereby:
1.
Declares that, by failing to adopt, within the prescribed period, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary
to comply with Directive 2000/14/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 May 2000 on the approximation of the
laws of the Member States relating to the noise emission in the environment by equipment for use outdoors, the Hellenic Republic
has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 22(1) of that directive;
2.
Orders the Hellenic Republic to pay the costs.
Puissochet
Macken
Cunha Rodrigues
Delivered in open court in Luxembourg on 5 June 2003.
R. Grass
J.-P. Puissochet
Registrar
President of the Third Chamber
–
Language of the case: Greek.