Order of the Court (Second Chamber) of 10 June 1987. - Dino Battaglia and others v Commission of the European Communities. - No need to give a decision. - Case 321/81.



European Court reports 1987 Page 02429



Parties

Grounds

Decision on costs

Operative part



Keywords

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PROCEDURE - APPLICATION RENDERED DEVOID OF PURPOSE AS A RESULT OF THE ADOPTION BY THE DEFENDANT OF MEASURES OF THE KIND PRESCRIBED IN A JUDGMENT OF THE COURT IN A PARALLEL CASE - NO NEED TO GIVE JUDGMENT

Parties

IN CASE 321/81

DINO BATTAGLIA AND 117 OTHER OFFICIALS AND SERVANTS OF THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES AT THE ISPRA RESEARCH CENTRE, REPRESENTED BY MARCEL SLUSNY, OF THE BRUSSELS BAR, WITH AN ADDRESS FOR SERVICE IN LUXEMBOURG CARE OF FRANCO AVENA, 29 RUE DE LA LIBERATION, STRASSEN,

APPLICANTS,

V

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, REPRESENTED BY JOERN PIPKORN AND DANIEL JACOB, MEMBERS OF ITS LEGAL DEPARTMENT, ACTING AS AGENTS, WITH AN ADDRESS FOR SERVICE IN LUXEMBOURG AT THE OFFICE OF G . KREMLIS, A MEMBER OF ITS LEGAL DEPARTMENT, JEAN MONNET BUILDING, KIRCHBERG,

DEFENDANT,

APPLICATION FOR THE ANNULMENT OF THE APPLICANTS' SALARY STATEMENTS AS FROM FEBRUARY 1981,

THE COURT ( SECOND CHAMBER )

COMPOSED OF : T . F . O' HIGGINS, PRESIDENT OF THE CHAMBER, O . DUE AND K . BAHLMANN, JUDGES,

ADVOCATE GENERAL : J . MISCHO

REGISTRAR : P . HEIM

AFTER HEARING THE VIEWS OF THE ADVOCATE GENERAL,

MAKES THE FOLLOWING

ORDER

Grounds

1 BY AN APPLICATION LODGED AT THE COURT REGISTRY ON 28 DECEMBER 1981, THE APPLICANTS, WHO ARE OFFICIALS OR SERVANTS OF THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, BROUGHT AN ACTION FOR THE ANNULMENT OF THEIR SALARY STATEMENTS AS FROM FEBRUARY 1981 .

2 IT WAS SUBSEQUENTLY DECIDED THAT THE PROCEEDINGS WOULD BE SUSPENDED PENDING THE DELIVERY OF JUDGMENTS IN CASE 737/79 BATTAGLIA ( JUDGMENTS OF 15 DECEMBER 1982 AND 15 JANUARY 1985 (( 1982 )) ECR 4479 AND (( 1985 )) ECR 71 RESPECTIVELY ), CASE 59/81 COMMISSION V COUNCIL ( JUDGMENT OF 6 OCTOBER 1982 (( 1982 )) ECR 3329 ) AND CASES 174 TO 176, 233, 247 AND 264/83 AMMAN AND OTHERS ( JUDGMENTS OF 30 SEPTEMBER 1986, ECR 2647,2667,2687,2709, 2729 AND 2749 ).

3 BY A LETTER RECEIVED AT THE COURT REGISTRY ON 23 DECEMBER 1986, THE COMMISSION CONFIRMED THAT IT HAD PAID TO THE APPLICANTS IN THESE PROCEEDINGS THE ARREARS DUE TO THEM UNDER COUNCIL REGULATION NO 3681/83 OF 19 DECEMBER 1983 ADJUSTING THE WEIGHTINGS APPLICABLE IN ITALY TO THE REMUNERATION AND PENSIONS OF OFFICIALS AND OTHER SERVANTS OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ( OFFICIAL JOURNAL 1983, L 368, P . 1 ), ADOPTED FOLLOWING THE INTERLOCUTORY JUDGMENT DELIVERED BY THE COURT ON 15 DECEMBER 1982 IN CASE 737/79 BATTAGLIA, CITED ABOVE . FOLLOWING THE JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF 15 JANUARY 1985, WHICH FOLLOWED ON FROM THE ABOVEMENTIONED JUDGMENT OF 15 DECEMBER 1982, IT ALSO PAID TO THE APPLICANTS DEFAULT INTEREST AT THE RATE OF 6% ON THE ARREARS PAID BY THE COMMISSION IN PURSUANCE OF THAT REGULATION .

4 THE SUPPLEMENTARY REMUNERATION CLAIMED WAS, ACCORDING TO THE COMMISSION, PAID TO THE APPLICANTS RETROACTIVELY PURSUANT TO COUNCIL REGULATION NO 3139/82 OF 22 NOVEMBER 1982 AMENDING THE TABLES OF BASIC SALARIES LAID DOWN IN REGULATIONS ( ECSC, EEC, EURATOM ) NO 371/82 AND ( ECSC, EEC, EURATOM ) NO 372/82 AND ADJUSTING, WITH EFFECT FROM 1 APRIL 1980, THE WEIGHTINGS APPLICABLE TO REMUNERATION AND PENSIONS PAYABLE IN THE VARIOUS COUNTRIES OF EMPLOYMENT ( OFFICIAL JOURNAL 1982, L 331, P . 1 ), WHICH WAS ADOPTED FOLLOWING THE COURT' S JUDGMENT OF 6 OCTOBER 1982 IN CASE 59/81, CITED ABOVE . THE COMMISSION DID NOT ACCEDE TO THE APPLICANTS' CLAIM REGARDING DEFAULT INTEREST ON THE SUPPLEMENTARY REMUNERATION PAID PURSUANT TO REGULATION NO 3139/82 . IN THAT CONNECTION, THE COMMISSION STATES THAT AN IDENTICAL CLAIM WAS DISPOSED OF BY THE JUDGMENTS OF THE COURT OF 30 SEPTEMBER 1986 IN CASES 174 TO 176, 233, 247 AND 264/83, CITED ABOVE, ACCORDING TO WHICH DEFAULT INTEREST IS NOT PAYABLE . THE COMMISSION CONSIDERED THAT, IN VIEW OF THOSE JUDGMENTS, THE APPLICATION NO LONGER HAD ANY PURPOSE AND REQUESTED THE COURT TO DECLARE, PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 69 ( 5 ) OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE, THAT THERE IS NO NEED TO GIVE A DECISION ON THE APPLICATION .

5 AS REGARDS THE COSTS, THE COMMISSION HAS CONCEDED THAT TO A CONSIDERABLE EXTENT THE PRESENT APPLICATION WAS PROMPTED BY THE POSITION THAT IT TOOK IN CASE 737/79, CITED ABOVE, IN WHICH IT RAISED OBJECTIONS OF INADMISSIBILITY . IT POINTS OUT, HOWEVER, THAT THE APPLICANTS HAVE FAILED IN THEIR SUBMISSIONS REGARDING DEFAULT INTEREST ON THE ARREARS PAID FOLLOWING THE ADOPTION OF REGULATION NO 3192/82 . IN THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES, THE COMMISSION TOOK THE VIEW THAT IT WAS EQUITABLE FOR IT TO PAY, IN ADDITION TO BEARING ITS OWN COSTS, TWO-THIRDS OF THE COSTS OF THE APPLICANTS, AND THAT THE APPLICANTS SHOULD BEAR THE BALANCE THEMSELVES .

6 BY A LETTER RECEIVED AT THE COURT REGISTRY ON 26 FEBRUARY 1987, COUNSEL FOR THE APPLICANTS INFORMED THE COURT THAT HE COULD NOT DISCONTINUE THE PROCEEDINGS BECAUSE UNDER THE TERMS OF THE MANDATE RECEIVED FROM HIS CLIENTS HE HAD NO AUTHORITY TO DO SO . HE LEFT IT FOR THE COURT TO RULE AS IT THOUGHT FIT ON THE PROPOSAL THAT IT SHOULD DECLARE THAT THERE WAS NO NEED TO GIVE A DECISION ON THE APPLICATION .

7 COUNSEL FOR THE PARTIES STATES, WITH RESPECT TO THE COSTS, THAT A CLAIM FOR INTEREST IS, IN PRINCIPLE, MERELY A SUBSIDIARY CLAIM, AS IN THIS CASE . THE COURT ORDERS INSTITUTIONS TO BEAR THE WHOLE OF THE COSTS WHERE AN OFFICIAL HAS IN ALL ESSENTIAL RESPECTS BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN HIS SUBMISSIONS . MOREOVER, THE APPLICATION FOR PAYMENT OF INTEREST WAS FORMULATED IN 1981 BUT THE JUDGMENTS OF THE COURT DECIDING THAT ISSUE IN CASES 174 TO 176, 233, 247 AND 264/83 WERE NOT DELIVERED UNTIL 30 SEPTEMBER 1986 .

8 IT MUST BE OBSERVED THAT THE APPLICANTS HAVE NOT DISPUTED THE ACCOUNT GIVEN BY THE COMMISSION IN ITS ABOVEMENTIONED LETTER OF 23 DECEMBER 1986 OF THE MEASURES TAKEN BY IT WITH REGARD TO THEM . NOR HAVE THEY DENIED THAT, IN VIEW OF THOSE MEASURES, THE APPLICATION NO LONGER HAS ANY PURPOSE . IT MUST THEREFORE BE FOUND THAT THE APPLICATION NO LONGER HAS ANY PURPOSE AND THAT THERE IS NO NEED TO GIVE A DECISION ON IT .

Decision on costs

COSTS

9 UNDER ARTICLE 69*(5 ) OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE, WHERE A CASE DOES NOT PROCEED TO JUDGMENT, THE COSTS ARE TO BE AT THE DISCRETION OF THE COURT . THE COMMISSION CONCEDES THAT THE PRESENT APPLICATION WAS, TO A CONSIDERABLE EXTENT, PROMPTED BY THE POSITION THAT IT TOOK IN CASE 737/79 . MOREOVER, THE MEASURES ADOPTED BY THE COMMISSION WITH RESPECT TO THE APPLICANTS SHOW THAT IT CONCEDED THAT THEIR SUBMISSIONS WERE IN ALL ESSENTIAL RESPECTS WELL-FOUNDED . IN THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES, THE COMMISSION MUST BE ORDERED TO PAY THE COSTS NECESSARILY INCURRED BY THE APPLICANTS .

Operative part

On those grounds,

THE COURT ( Second Chamber )

hereby orders :

( 1 ) There is no need to give a decision;

( 2 ) The defendant shall bear the costs .

Luxembourg, 10 June 1987 .