# C_2010063EN.01001201.xml

| 13.3.2010 | EN | Official Journal of the European Union | C 63/12 |
| --------- | -- | -------------------------------------- | ------- |

---

Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 28 January 2010 — Commission of the European Communities v Ireland

(Case C-456/08)( 1 )

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations - Directive 93/37/EEC - Public works contracts - Notification to candidates and tenderers of decisions awarding contracts - Directive 89/665/EEC - Procedures for review of the award of public contracts - Period within which actions for review must be brought - Date from which the period for bringing an action starts to run)

2010/C 63/18

Language of the case: English

Parties

Applicant: Commission of the European Communities (represented by: G. Zavvos, M. Konstantinidis and E. White, agents)

Defendant: Ireland (represented by: D. O’Hagan, agent, A. Collins, SC)

Re:

Failure of Member State to fulfil obligations — Infringement of Article 1(1) of Council Directive 89/665/EEC of 21 December 1989 on the coordination of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to the application of review procedures to the award of public supply and public works contracts (OJ 1989 L 395, p. 33) — Infringement of Article 8(2) of Council Directive 93/37/EEC of 14 June 1993 concerning the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts (OJ 1993 L 199, p. 54) — Notification of the decision awarding the contract — Duty to state clearly the time-limit for bringing an action against a decision awarding a public contract

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:

| 1. | Declares that:
—
by reason of the fact that the National Roads Authority did not inform the unsuccessful tenderer of its decision to award the contract for the design, construction, financing and operation of the Dundalk Western Bypass, and —
by maintaining in force Order 84A(4) of the Rules of the Superior Courts, in the version resulting from Statutory Instrument No 374 of 1998, in so far as it gives rise to uncertainty as to which decision must be challenged through legal proceedings and as to how periods for bringing an action are to be determined, Ireland has failed — as regards the first head of claim — to fulfil its obligations under Article 1(1) of Council Directive 89/665/EEC of 21 December 1989 on the coordination of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to the application of review procedures to the award of public supply and public works contracts, as amended by Council Directive 92/50/EEC of 18 June 1992, and Article 8(2) of Council Directive 93/37/EEC of 14 June 1993 concerning the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, as amended by European Parliament and Council Directive 97/52/EC of 13 October 1997 and — as regards the second head of claim — to fulfil its obligations under Article 1(1) of Directive 89/665, as amended by Directive 92/50; | — | by reason of the fact that the National Roads Authority did not inform the unsuccessful tenderer of its decision to award the contract for the design, construction, financing and operation of the Dundalk Western Bypass, and | — | by maintaining in force Order 84A(4) of the Rules of the Superior Courts, in the version resulting from Statutory Instrument No 374 of 1998, in so far as it gives rise to uncertainty as to which decision must be challenged through legal proceedings and as to how periods for bringing an action are to be determined, |
| -- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | - | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | - | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| — | by reason of the fact that the National Roads Authority did not inform the unsuccessful tenderer of its decision to award the contract for the design, construction, financing and operation of the Dundalk Western Bypass, and | | | | |
| — | by maintaining in force Order 84A(4) of the Rules of the Superior Courts, in the version resulting from Statutory Instrument No 374 of 1998, in so far as it gives rise to uncertainty as to which decision must be challenged through legal proceedings and as to how periods for bringing an action are to be determined, | | | | |

| 2. | Orders Ireland to pay the costs. |
| -- | -------------------------------- |

---

( 1 )  OJ C 313, 6.12.2008.

---