Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:1998:479
Date: 1998-10-15
Language of the case: Italian
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Energy;Environment;Waste
Procedure: Arbitration clause
Origin: Italy

Summary of the J u d g m e n t 
Procedure — Proceedings brought before the Court of Justice on the basis of an arbitration clause 
— To be resolved in the light of the national law governing the contract — Contract to be inter­
preted in the light of its context — Contract granting Community funding in return for undertak­
ings given by the recipient — Termination clause — Possible for either party to derogate from the 
usual format of contracts under the national law applicable 
(EC Treaty, Art. 181; Council Regulation No 3640/85) 
Where proceedings are brought before the 
Court of Justice pursuant to an arbitration 
clause, it must resolve the dispute on the basis 
of the national law applicable to the contract 
and in the light of the contract's context. 
Where a contract is concluded pursuant to 
Regulation N o 3640/85 on the promotion, by 
financial support, of demonstration projects 
and industrial pilot projects in the energy 
field, under which funding is granted in return 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-69/97 
for undertakings given by the recipients, and 
where the law governing that contract recog­
nises as forming part of the principle of 
freedom of contract the parties' right freely 
to determine the terms of the contract within 
the limits set by the law, the parties may insert 
therein a termination clause which is not sub­
ject to the condition that the contractor must 
be responsible for non-performance, by way 
of derogation from the usual format of con­
tracts under the national law in question and 
having regard, inter alia, to the particular 
nature of relations between the Community 
and the company in receipt of funding under 
the Regulation. 
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