EN Official Journal of the European Union C 232/16

Action brought on 19 May 2011 — European Commission v Czech Republic

(Case C-241/11)

2011/C 232/27

Language of the case: Czech

Parties

Applicants: European Commission (represented by: Z. Malůšková, N.Yerrell and K.Ph. Wojcik, acting as Agents)

Defendant: Czech Republic

Form of order sought

— declare that, by failing to adopt the laws and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Articles 8, 9, 13, 15 to 18 and 20(2) to (4) of Directive 2003/41/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 June 2003 on the activities and supervision of institutions for occupational retirement provision (1), and by thereby failing to fulfil its obligations under Article 22(1) of that directive, the Czech Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations arising under the judgment in Case C-343/08 Commission v Czech Republic and thereby failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 260 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;

— order the Czech Republic to pay to the Commission account ‘own resources of the European Union’ lump sum payments of EUR 5 644,80 for each day of delay in adopting the measures required by the judgment in Case C-343/08 Commission v Czech Republic, from the day of the delivery of that judgment on 14 January 2010 — until the date of delivery of judgment in this case, or — until the date upon which the Czech Republic adopts the measures required by the judgment in Case C-343/08 Commission v Czech Republic, should that date be sooner than the delivery of judgment in this case, and penalty payments of EUR 22 364,16 for each day of delay in adopting the measures required by the judgment in Case C-343/08 Commission v Czech Republic, from the date of delivery of judgment in this case until the date upon which the Czech Republic adopts the measures required by the judgment in Case C-343/08 Commission v Czech Republic; and

— order the Czech Republic to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

On 14 January 2010, the Court of Justice gave judgment in Case C-343/08 Commission v Czech Republic (2), in which it held that ‘by failing to adopt, within the period prescribed, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Articles 8, 9, 13, 15 to 18 and 20(2) to (4) of Directive 2003/41/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 June 2003 on the activities and supervision of institutions for occupational retirement provision, the Czech Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 22(1) of that directive’.

The Czech Republic has to date not informed the Commission that it has taken the legal and administrative measures necessary to comply with Articles 8, 9, 13, 15 to 18 and 20(2) to (4) of Directive 2003/41/EC so as to fulfil its obligations under Article 22(1) of that directive. The Commission therefore takes the view that the Czech Republic has not taken the measures required of it by the judgment in Case C-343/08. According to Article 260(2) TFEU, if the Commission considers that the Member State concerned has not taken the necessary measures to comply with the judgment of the Court, it may bring the case before the Court and at the same time specify the amount of the lump sum or penalty payment to be paid by the Member State concerned which it considers appropriate in the circumstances. On the basis of the method laid down in the Communication from the Commission on the application of Article 228 of the EC Treaty (SEC/2005/1658), the Commission claims that the Court should impose the lump sum and penalty payments as set out in the form of order sought.

(1) OJ 2003 L 235, p. 10

(2) Not yet published in the ECR