Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2002:25
Date: 2002-02-07
Language of the case: German
Court formation: Fourth Chamber
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Agriculture and Fisheries;Milk products;Non-contractual liability
Concepts: Basis of liability
Procedure: Action for damages - unfounded
Origin: Germany

Summary of the Judgment 
Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Unlawful conduct of the institutions — 
Milk producers deprived of reference quantities under the additional levy scheme 
following their suspension of deliveries under non-marketing premium arrangements — 
Producers who did not resume production on expiry of their non-marketing undertak­
ings — Breach of the principle of protection of legitimate expectations — No such 
breach 
(EC Treaty, Art. 215, second para, (now Art. 288, second para., EC); Council Regu­
lations Nos 1078/77 and 857/84) 
II - 391 
SUMMARY — CASE T-199/94 
The Community cannot, as a result of the 
application of Regulation No 857/84 fixing 
the reference quantity to be allocated under 
the scheme for additional levies on milk to 
each producer on the basis of production 
delivered during a reference year, be held 
liable with regard to a producer who, on 
account of a non-marketing undertaking 
entered into under Regulation No 1078/77 
which expired before the entry into force of 
Regulation No 857/84, did not resume 
production on that date for reasons uncon­
nected with the non-marketing undertaking 
and who has failed to adduce objective 
evidence of any intention to resume 
production upon expiry of that undertak­
ing. 
Producers who have not manifested such an 
intention cannot claim to have had a 
legitimate expectation in the possibility of 
resuming production at some unspecified 
future date because their position is no 
different from that of economic operators 
who did not produce milk and who, after 
the introduction of the reference quantity 
scheme, were prevented from commencing 
such production. In the sphere of the 
common organisations of the market, 
whose purpose involves constant adjust­
ments to meet changes in the economic 
situation, economic operators cannot legit­
imately expect that they will not be subject 
to restrictions which may arise out of 
future rules of market or structural policy. 
(see paras 49, 67, 71) 
II - 392