EN Official Journal of the European Union C 116/5

Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 13 March 2008 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Bundesverwaltungsgericht — Germany) — Heinrich Stefan Schneider v Land Rheinland-Pfalz

(Case C-285/06) (1)

(Agriculture - Regulations (EC) No 1493/1999 and (EC) No 753/2002 - Common organisation of the market in wine - Description, designation, presentation and protection of certain wine sector products - Protection of traditional terms - Translation into another language - Use for wines from another producing Member State)

(2008/C 116/09)

Language of the case: German

Referring court

Bundesverwaltungsgericht

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Heinrich Stefan Schneider

Defendant: Land Rheinland-Pfalz

Intervening party: Vertreterin des Bundesinteresses beim Bundesverwaltungsgericht

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Bundesverwaltungsgericht (Germany) — Interpretation of Article 47(2)(b) and (c) and the fifth indent of point (B)(1)(b) and point (B)(3) of Annex VII to Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in wine (OJ 1999 L 179, p. 1), as amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1512/2005 of 15 September 2005 amending Regulation (EC) No 753/2002 laying down certain rules for applying Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 as regards the description, designation, presentation and protection of certain wine sector products (OJ 2005 L 241, p. 15), and of Articles 23 and 24 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 753/2002 of 29 April 2002 laying down certain rules for applying Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 as regards the description, designation, presentation and protection of certain wine sector products (OJ 2002 L 118, p. 1) — Prohibition against imitation or evocation of protected additional traditional terms — Possibility of using such a term in a language other than that of the protected traditional term or for wines from a Member State other than those of the protected traditional term — Use of the French language terms ‘Réserve’ or ‘Grande réserve’ or the German language terms ‘Reserve’ or ‘Privat-Reserve’ for German wines

Operative part of the judgment

1. Article 47(2)(c) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in wine, in conjunction with point (B)(3) of Annex VII thereto and Article 6(1) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 753/2002 of 29 April 2002 laying down certain rules for applying Regulation No 1493/1999 as regards the description, designation, presentation and protection of certain wine sector products, as amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1512/2005 of 15 September 2005, must be interpreted as meaning that the use of a particular relating to the production or ageing method or the quality of a wine may be permitted under those provisions only if there is no risk that it will mislead the persons to whom it is addressed by creating confusion between that particular and the other traditional terms referred to in the fifth indent of point (B)(1)(b) of Annex VII to Regulation No 1493/1999 and Article 23 of Regulation No 753/2002. It is for the national court to assess whether the terms in issue in the main proceedings are likely to give rise to such a risk.

2. Article 24(2)(a) of Regulation No 753/2002, as amended by Regulation No 1512/2005, is to be interpreted as meaning that there may be imitation or evocation of a traditional term within the meaning of that provision where that term is translated into a language other than that in which that term is given in Annex III to that regulation, if that translation is likely to cause confusion or to mislead the persons to whom it is addressed. It is for the national court to examine whether that is the case in the dispute before it.

3. Article 24(2) of Regulation No 753/2002, as amended by Regulation No 1512/2005, is to be interpreted as meaning that a traditional term listed in Annex III to that regulation is protected both with regard to wines of the same category/categories from the same producer Member State as that traditional term and with regard to wines of the same category/categories from other producer Member States.

(1) OJ C 237, 30.9.2006.