Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2024:775
Date: 2024-09-19
Language of the case: Slovak
Court formation: Eighth Chamber
Subject matter: External relations;Commercial policy;Approximation of laws
Procedure: Action for failure to fulfil obligations - successful
Origin: Slovakia

Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 19 September 2024 – Commission v Slovak Republic (Late payment – Public health institutions) (Case C‑412/23) (1) ( Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations – Directive 2011/7/EU – Combating late payments in commercial transactions – Article 4(4)(b) – Commercial transactions between undertakings and public authorities – Power conferred on Member States to extend up to a maximum of 60 calendar days the time limit for payment for public entities providing healthcare – Duty of Member States to ensure that those public entities do not in practice exceed that time limit ) 1. Actions for failure to fulfil obligations – Subject matter of the dispute – Determination during the pre-litigation procedure – Consideration of events which took place after the delivery of the reasoned opinion – Conditions – Facts of the same kind and constituting the same conduct as those referred to originally (Art. 258 TFEU) (see paragraph 31) 2. Approximation of laws – Combating late payment in commercial transactions – Directive 2011/7 – Commercial transactions between undertakings and public authorities – Obligation of Member States to ensure effective compliance, by their public authorities, with periods for payment not exceeding 30 to 60 calendar days – Obligation to achieve a result – Failure to fulfil obligations (Art. 258 TFEU; European Parliament and Council Directive 2011/7, Art. 4(3) and (4)(b)) (see paragraphs 34-37, 39-43, operative part 1) 3. Actions for failure to fulfil obligations – Objective nature – Reason for the failure to fulfil obligations – Irrelevant (Art. 258 TFEU) (see paragraph 38) Operative part The Court: 1. Declares that the Slovak Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 4(4)(b) of Directive 2011/7/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 on combating late payments in commercial transactions, by failing to ensure that its public entities providing healthcare comply in practice with the time limit for payment of 60 days set out in that provision; 2. Orders the Slovak Republic to pay the costs. 1 OJ C 314, 4.9.2023.