ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
6

As regards public participation in decision-making, Article 6(2) to (5) of the EIA Directive is worded as follows: ‘2. The public shall be informed, whether by public notices or by other appropriate means such as electronic media where available, of the following matters early in the environmental decision-making procedures referred to in Article 2(2) and, at the latest, as soon as information can reasonably be provided: (a) the request for development consent; (b) the fact that the project is subject to an environmental impact assessment procedure and, where relevant, the fact that Article 7 applies; (c) details of the competent authorities responsible for taking the decision, those from which relevant information can be obtained, those to which comments or questions can be submitted, and details of the time schedule for transmitting comments or questions; (d) the nature of possible decisions or, where there is one, the draft decision; (e) an indication of the availability of the information gathered pursuant to Article 5; (f) an indication of the times and places at which, and the means by which, the relevant information will be made available; (g) details of the arrangements for public participation made pursuant to paragraph 5 of this Article. 3. Member States shall ensure that, within reasonable time-frames, the following is made available to the public concerned: (a) any information gathered pursuant to Article 5; (b) in accordance with national legislation, the main reports and advice issued to the competent authority or authorities at the time when the public concerned is informed in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article; (c) in accordance with the provisions of Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 on public access to environmental information [(OJ 2003 L 41, p. 26)], information other than that referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article which is relevant for the decision in accordance with Article 8 of this Directive and which only becomes available after the time the public concerned was informed in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article. 4. The public concerned shall be given early and effective opportunities to participate in the environmental decision-making procedures referred to in Article 2(2) and shall, for that purpose, be entitled to express comments and opinions when all options are open to the competent authority or authorities before the decision on the request for development consent is taken. 5. The detailed arrangements for informing the public (for example by bill posting within a certain radius or publication in local newspapers) and for consulting the public concerned (for example by written submissions or by way of a public inquiry) shall be determined by the Member States.’
13

Article 22 of that directive, headed ‘Postponement of attainment deadlines and exemption from the obligation to apply certain limit values’, is worded as follows: ‘1. Where, in a given zone or agglomeration, conformity with the limit values for nitrogen dioxide or benzene cannot be achieved by the deadlines specified in Annex XI, a Member State may postpone those deadlines by a maximum of five years for that particular zone or agglomeration, on condition that an air quality plan is established in accordance with Article 23 for the zone or agglomeration to which the postponement would apply; such air quality plan shall be supplemented by the information listed in Section B of Annex XV related to the pollutants concerned and shall demonstrate how conformity will be achieved with the limit values before the new deadline. 2. Where, in a given zone or agglomeration, conformity with the limit values for PM10 as specified in Annex XI cannot be achieved because of site-specific dispersion characteristics, adverse climatic conditions or transboundary contributions, a Member State shall be exempt from the obligation to apply those limit values until 11 June 2011[,] provided that the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 are fulfilled and that the Member State shows that all appropriate measures have been taken at national, regional and local level to meet the deadlines. 3. Where a Member State applies paragraphs 1 or 2, it shall ensure that the limit value for each pollutant is not exceeded by more than the maximum margin of tolerance specified in Annex XI for each of the pollutants concerned. 4. Member States shall notify the Commission where, in their view, paragraphs 1 or 2 are applicable, and shall communicate the air quality plan referred to in paragraph 1[,] including all relevant information necessary for the Commission to assess whether or not the relevant conditions are satisfied. In its assessment, the Commission shall take into account estimated effects on ambient air quality in the Member States, at present and in the future, of measures that have been taken by the Member States[,] as well as estimated effects on ambient air quality of current Community measures and planned Community measures to be proposed by the Commission. Where the Commission has raised no objections within nine months of receipt of that notification, the relevant conditions for the application of paragraphs 1 or 2 shall be deemed to be satisfied. If objections are raised, the Commission may require Member States to adjust or provide new air quality plans.’
26

In those circumstances, the Högsta domstolen (Supreme Court) decided to refer the following questions to the Court for a preliminary ruling: ‘(1) Must Article 4 of Regulation No 1346/2000 be interpreted as meaning that it applies to an action which is brought before a Swedish court by the liquidator of a Polish company — which is the subject of insolvency proceedings in Poland — against a Swedish company for payment of goods delivered under an agreement into which the companies entered before that insolvency? (2) If the answer to the first question is in the affirmative, is it of any importance that, during the proceedings before the courts, the liquidator transfers the claim at issue to a company which enters the proceedings in the place of the liquidator? (3) If the answer to the second question is in the affirmative, is it of any importance if the company which has entered the proceedings thereafter becomes insolvent? (4) If the defendant in the proceedings before the courts in the situation set out in the first question claims that the liquidator’s claim for payment should be set off against a counterclaim which arises from the same agreement as the claim, is that set-off situation covered by Article 4(2)(d) [of Regulation No 1346/2000]? (5) Is the relationship between Article 4(2)(d) and Article 6(1) of Regulation No 1346/2000 to be interpreted as meaning that Article 6(1) applies only if it is not possible under the law of the State of the opening of proceedings to apply a set-off, or can Article 6(1) also apply to other situations, for example where there is only a certain difference between the level of possibility of set-off in the legal orders in question or where there are no differences at all but set-off is nonetheless refused in the State of the opening of proceedings?’
29

It is in those circumstances that the College van Beroep voor het bedrijfsleven (Administrative Court of Appeal for Trade and Industry) decided to stay the proceedings and refer the following questions to the Court for a preliminary ruling: ‘(1) (a) Does Article 66(1) of [the EMFF Regulation], given that it provides that the EMFF ‘shall’ support the preparation and implementation of production and marketing plans referred to in Article 28 of [the CMO Regulation], preclude a Member State from responding to a producer organisation which has submitted an application for such a grant, by arguing that the Member State concerned had not made available, either in its operational programme approved by the European Commission, or in the national rules for determining the eligibility of expenditure, the possibility of making such an application at the time of the submission of the application for a certain category of expenditure (in the present case: the costs of the preparation and implementation of production and marketing plans) or for a certain period (in the present case: the year 2014)? (b) Is it relevant to the answer to question 1(a) that the producer organisation is obliged, under Article 28(1) of [the CMO Regulation], to draw up a production and marketing plan and, after approval of the production and marketing plan by the Member State, to implement that production and marketing plan? (2) If the answer to question 1(a) is that Article 66(1) of [the EMFF Regulation] precludes a Member State from responding to a producer organisation which has submitted an application for a grant for the preparation and implementation of production and marketing plans by arguing that the Member State concerned had not made available the possibility of making such an application at the time of the submission of the application, can the grant applicant concerned then rely directly on Article 66(1) of [the EMFF Regulation] as the legal basis for a claim against his Member State on the provision of the grant in question? (3) If the answer to question 2 is that, in the case referred to in question 2, the grant applicant concerned can rely directly on Article 66(1) of [the EMFF regulation] as the legal basis for a claim against his Member State on the provision of the grant in question, does Article 65(6) of [the CSC regulation] then preclude the provision of a grant for the preparation and implementation of a production and implementation plan in a situation where the grant application is submitted after the production and marketing plan has been prepared and implemented?’
30

In those circumstances, the College van Beroep voor het bedrijfsleven (Administrative Court of Appeal for Trade and Industry) decided to stay the proceedings and to refer the following questions to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling: ‘(1) Is Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006] applicable to the relationship between the provider of a subsidy, in the present case the Minister, and the beneficiary (the recipient of the subsidy)? (2) If the first question is answered to the effect that Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006] does apply to the relationship between the provider of the subsidy and the beneficiary: can expenditure that has been paid by a third party (whether or not by set-off) be regarded as expenditure actually paid by the beneficiary as referred to in Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006]? (3) If the second question is answered to the effect that expenditure paid by a third party (whether or not by set-off) cannot be regarded as expenditure actually paid by the beneficiary as referred to in Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006]: (a) does an executive practice whereby the provider of the subsidy has consistently considered contributions from third parties to be expenditure actually paid by the beneficiary as referred to in Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006] mean that the beneficiary could not have been expected to detect such an incorrect interpretation of Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006] by the provider of the subsidy, with the result that the beneficiary is entitled to the subsidy as granted to him, and (b) should the contributions from third parties then be included in the expenditure actually paid by the beneficiary as referred to in Article 55(1) of Regulation [No 1198/2006] (in which case the subsidy is set higher) or (c) should recovery of the wrongly granted subsidy then be waived on the basis of the principle of the protection of legitimate expectations and/or the principle of legal certainty? (d) does it make any difference in that regard if the provider of the subsidy, as in the present case, has granted an advance on the subsidy?’
10

The referring court states that those provisions have widened the scope of the tax on stock exchange transactions (‘taks op de beursverrichtingen’; ‘TOB’), to which transactions entered into or executed in Belgium which relate to Belgian or foreign public funds are subject, in so far as the transaction is executed through a professional intermediary. That court states that, under those provisions, those transactions are no longer the only transactions subject to that tax, since the transactions ‘deemed to be concluded or executed in Belgium’ are also covered, with the result that that tax is also due if the purchase or sale order is issued to a non-resident professional intermediary by a resident issuer of an order, namely by ‘a natural person who has his habitual residence in Belgium’ or by a ‘legal person on behalf of a registered office or an establishment of that legal person in Belgium’. The referring court adds that, in the latter case, the issuer of an order becomes liable for the TOB instead of the professional intermediary, since non-resident professional intermediaries cannot be required to comply with the Belgian tax provisions. That issuer of an order is required to declare and pay that tax within two months of the transaction in question, unless he can establish that it has already been paid, either through the intermediary or his liable representative.
3

Recitals 7, 9, 26, 28 and 47 of Directive 2008/48 are worded as follows: ‘(7) In order to facilitate the emergence of a well-functioning internal market in consumer credit, it is necessary to make provision for a harmonised Community framework in a number of core areas. … … (9) Full harmonisation is necessary in order to ensure that all consumers in the Community enjoy a high and equivalent level of protection of their interests and to create a genuine internal market. Member States should therefore not be allowed to maintain or introduce national provisions other than those laid down in this Directive. However, such restriction should only apply where there are provisions harmonised in this Directive. Where no such harmonised provisions exist, Member States should remain free to maintain or introduce national legislation. … Another example of this possibility for Member States could be the maintenance or introduction of national provisions on the cancellation of a contract for the sale of goods or supply of services if the consumer exercises his right of withdrawal from the credit agreement. … … (26) … In the expanding credit market, in particular, it is important that creditors should not engage in irresponsible lending or give out credit without prior assessment of creditworthiness, and the Member States should carry out the necessary supervision to avoid such behaviour and should determine the necessary means to sanction creditors in the event of their doing so. … [C]reditors should bear the responsibility of checking individually the creditworthiness of the consumer. To that end, they should be allowed to use information provided by the consumer not only during the preparation of the credit agreement in question, but also during a long-standing commercial relationship. The Member States’ authorities could also give appropriate instructions and guidelines to creditors. Consumers should also act with prudence and respect their contractual obligations. … (28) To assess the credit status of a consumer, the creditor should also consult relevant databases; the legal and actual circumstances may require that such consultations vary in scope. … … (47) Member States should lay down rules on penalties applicable to infringements of the national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive and ensure that they are implemented. While the choice of penalties remains within the discretion of the Member States, the penalties provided for should be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.’
8

Article 5(9) of decreto-legge 6 luglio 2012, n. 95, convertito con modificazioni dalla legge 7 agosto 2012, n. 135 (Decree-Law No 95 of 6 July 2012, converted into law, with amendments, by Law No 135 of 7 August 2012 (Ordinary Supplement to GURI No 156 of 6 July 2012)), in the version of the text amended by Article 6 of decreto-legge 24 guigno 2014, n. 90, convertito dalla legge 11 agosto 2014, n. 114 (Decree-Law No 90 of 24 June 2014, converted into law by Law No 114 of 11 August 2014 (Ordinary Supplement to GURI No 190 of 18 August 2014)) (‘Decree-Law No 95/2012’), regulates the award of analysis and consultancy roles by public administrative authorities and prohibits them, inter alia, from awarding such roles to retired public-sector or private-sector employees. They are likewise prohibited from awarding to such retired persons management positions or positions on the governing bodies of such administrative authorities, as well as on the governing bodies of undertakings and companies controlled by those authorities, with the exception of the roles of member of the boards of regional undertakings and of member or representative of the elected bodies of certain undertakings. Those roles, offices and positions may, however, be awarded to them in cases where they are performed on a voluntary basis. In addition, with regard to the management positions, and without prejudice to their voluntary nature, it is specified that the duration of those terms of office may not exceed one year, a period that may not be extended or renewed, with the same administrative authority.
3

Recitals 31 and 33 of Directive 2014/24 state: ‘(31) There is considerable legal uncertainty as to how far contracts concluded between entities in the public sector should be covered by public procurement rules. The relevant case-law of the Court of Justice … is interpreted differently between Member States and even between contracting authorities. It is therefore necessary to clarify in which cases contracts concluded within the public sector are not subject to the application of public procurement rules. Such clarification should be guided by the principles set out in the relevant case-law of the Court of Justice … The sole fact that both parties to an agreement are themselves public authorities does not as such rule out the application of procurement rules. However, the application of public procurement rules should not interfere with the freedom of public authorities to perform the public service tasks conferred on them by using their own resources, which includes the possibility of cooperation with other public authorities. It should be ensured that any exempted public-public cooperation does not result in a distortion of competition in relation to private economic operators in so far as it places a private provider of services in a position of advantage vis-à-vis its competitors. … (33) Contracting authorities should be able to choose to provide jointly their public services by way of cooperation without being obliged to use any particular legal form. Such cooperation might cover all types of activities related to the performance of services and responsibilities assigned to or assumed by the participating authorities, such as mandatory or voluntary tasks of local or regional authorities or services conferred upon specific bodies by public law. The services provided by the various participating authorities need not necessarily be identical; they might also be complementary. Contracts for the joint provision of public services should not be subject to the application of the rules set out in this Directive provided that they are concluded exclusively between contracting authorities, that the implementation of that cooperation is governed solely by considerations relating to the public interest and that no private service provider is placed in a position of advantage vis-à-vis its competitors. In order to fulfil those conditions, the cooperation should be based on a cooperative concept. Such cooperation does not require all participating authorities to assume the performance of main contractual obligations, as long as there are commitments to contribute towards the cooperative performance of the public service in question. In addition, the implementation of the cooperation, including any financial transfers between the participating contracting authorities, should be governed solely by considerations relating to the public interest.’
16

Paragraph 47 of the Arzneimittelgesetz (Law on medicinal products) in the version applicable to the facts of the main proceedings (‘the AMG’), entitled ‘Distribution Channel’, provides, in subparagraphs 3 and 4: ‘(3) Pharmaceutical undertakings may supply, or arrange to have supplied, samples of finished medicinal products to 1. physicians, dentists or veterinarians, or 2. other persons practising medicine or dentistry as a profession, provided no prescription-only medicinal products are involved, or 3. training centres for health professionals. Pharmaceutical undertakings may supply, or arrange to have supplied, samples of a finished medicinal product to training centres for health professionals only for the purpose of training. Samples may not contain any of the substances or preparations 1. referred to in Paragraph 2 of the Betäubungsmittelgesetz [(Law on narcotic drugs)] or listed as such in Annexes II or III to the Law on narcotic drugs, or 2. which, pursuant to the third sentence of Paragraph 48(2), may only be prescribed by special prescription. (4) Pharmaceutical undertakings may supply, or arrange to have supplied, to persons referred to in the first sentence of subparagraph 3, only upon written or electronic request, not more than two samples, in the smallest package size, in the course of one year, of a finished medicinal product. Samples shall be accompanied by a summary of product characteristics, in so far as such information is provided for in Paragraph 11a. The purpose of the sample shall be, inter alia, to inform physicians about the medicinal product itself. Separate records shall be kept for each of the recipients of samples, including of the kind and extent of samples supplied and the date of supply thereof, which must be presented to the competent authority upon request.’
Environment – Urban waste-water treatment – Directive 91/271 – Ensure, in relation to discharges, compliance over time with the quality requirements from the entry into operation of the treatment plant – None – Failure to fulfil obligations

(Council Directive 91/271, Art. 15(1), first indent and Annex I, points B and D)

(see paras 41, 42)
Action for annulment – Natural or legal persons – Measures of direct and individual concern to them – Whether directly concerned – Criteria – Commission Regulation renewing the approval of an active substance under Regulation 1107/2009 – Appeal by an association made up of wheat producers and consumers and their protection associations responsible for defending the collective interests of its members – Not directly concerned – Inadmissibility

(Art. 263, fourth para., TFEU; Regulation No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council; Commission Regulations No 540/2011 and 2017/2324; Council Directive 91/414, Annex I)

(see paras 51, 53, 54, 56-58)
Judicial proceedings – General Court seised under an arbitration clause – Jurisdiction of the Court – Scope – Prohibition on ruling ultra petita – Obligation to comply with the framework of the dispute as defined by the parties

(Art. 272 TFEU; Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 21; Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Arts 76 and 84(1))

(see paras 40, 41)
1.

Declares that, by not adopting within the prescribed periods all the necessary measures for establishing appropriate conservation objectives and appropriate conservation measures in relation to the 239 Sites of Community Importance which are on Greek territory and are included in Commission Decision 2006/613/EC of 19 July 2006 adopting, pursuant to Council Directive 92/43/EEC, the list of sites of Community importance for the Mediterranean biogeographical region, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 4(4) and 6(1) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, as amended by Council Directive 2006/105/EC of 20 November 2006;