ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
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1 Approximation of laws - Uniform laws - Industrial and commercial property - Patent law - Supplementary protection certificate for medicinal products - Protection conferred by the certificate - Scope

(Council Regulation No 1768/92, Art. 3(b))

2 Approximation of laws - Uniform laws - Industrial and commercial property - Patent law - Supplementary protection certificate for medicinal products - Condition for obtaining such a certificate - Product covered by a basic patent in force - Assessment under the relevant rules

(Council Regulation No 1768/92, Art. 3(a))

Summary

1 On a proper construction of Regulation No 1768/92 concerning the creation of a supplementary protection certificate for medicinal products and, in particular, Article 3(b) thereof, where a product in the form referred to in the marketing authorisation is protected by a basic patent in force, the supplementary protection certificate is capable of covering the product, as a medicinal product, in any of the forms enjoying the protection of the basic patent. A different interpretation would frustrate the fundamental objective of the Regulation, which is to provide for sufficient protection to encourage research in the pharmaceutical field, which plays a decisive role in the continuing improvement in public health.

2 As Community law now stands, the provisions concerning patents have not yet been made the subject of harmonisation at Community level or of an approximation of laws.

Accordingly, in order to determine - in connection with the application of Regulation No 1768/92 concerning the creation of a supplementary protection certificate for medicinal products and, in particular, Article 3(a) thereof, under which a certificate will be granted only if the product is protected by a basic patent in force - whether a product is protected by a basic patent, reference must be made to the rules which govern that patent.
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Procedure - Proceedings brought before the Court on the basis of an arbitration clause - Contract granting Community funding for an energy project - Termination of a contract by application of the contractual terms - Right to reimbursement of advance payments - Default interest

(EC Treaty, Art. 181 (now Art. 238 EC); Council Regulation No 3640/85)
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Procedure - Proceedings brought before the Court of Justice on the basis of an arbitration clause - Unilateral termination under the terms of the contract - Claim for reimbursement of the advance, together with interest as provided for in the contract - Partial reimbursement - Whether partial reimbursement to be applied to capital or to interest due

(EC Treaty, Art. 181 (now Art. 238 EC))
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1 Procedure - Decision of the Court given by reasoned order - Conditions - Action manifestly inadmissible or manifestly lacking foundation in law - Submissions inconsistent with established case-law

(Rules of Procedure of the Court of First Instance, Art. 111)

2 Officials - Recruitment - Appointment in grade - Appointment to a higher grade in a career bracket - Discretion of the appointing authority - Whether entitled to appointment in a higher grade - No such right

(Staff Regulations, Art. 31(2))

3 Officials - Recruitment - Appointment in grade - Appointment to a grade higher than the starting grade in a career bracket - By way of an exception to the general classification rules

(Staff Regulations, Arts 5 and 31(2); Annex I)

Summary

1 Under Article 111 of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of First Instance, where an action is manifestly inadmissible or manifestly lacking any foundation in law, the Court may, by reasoned order, give a decision on the action without taking further steps in the proceedings. Where the arguments put forward by the applicant are manifestly inconsistent with established case-law, the Court may properly conclude that the action is manifestly unfounded within the meaning of Article 111 of its Rules of Procedure.

2 As regards the appointment of an official in a particular grade, the appointing authority enjoys a broad discretion, particularly for the purpose of assessing the professional or practical experience of a person recruited as an official. That being so, the fact that a person has a certain level of professional or practical experience does not entail a right to be appointed to a higher grade in any given career bracket.

3 The option available to the administration of appointing a newly-recruited official to a grade higher than the starting grade in a basic or intermediate career bracket must be construed as an exception to the general rules governing classification, given the appointing authority's obligation to reconcile use of its power under Article 31(2) with the requirements arising from the concept of a career bracket for the purposes of Article 5 of the Staff Regulations and Annex I thereto.
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1 Transport - Maritime transport - Cargo-sharing agreement between a Member State and a non-member country - Future agreement within the meaning of Article 5(1) of Regulation No 4055/86 - Meaning

(Council Regulation No 4055/86, Arts 3, 4 and 5(1))

2 Transport - Maritime transport - Cargo-sharing agreement between a Member State and a non-member country - Obligation to adjust existing agreements before the entry into force of Regulation No 4055/86 - Deadlines for adjustment

(Council Regulation No 4055/86, Art. 4(1))

Summary

1 An agreement between a Member State and a non-member country, containing cargo-sharing arrangements between the contracting parties, is a future agreement within the meaning of Article 5(1) of Regulation No 4055/86 applying the principle of freedom to provide services to maritime transport between Member States and between Member States and third countries if it entered into force only after 1 January 1987, the date of entry into force of that Regulation. On the other hand, agreements which entered into force before that date constitute agreements subject to Articles 3 and 4 of Regulation No 4055/86.

2 Article 4(1) of Regulation No 4055/86 applying the principle of freedom to provide services to maritime transport between Member States and between Member States and third countries draws a distinction - as regards determination of the date from which existing cargo-sharing agreements between Member States and non-member countries should have been adjusted - between trades governed by the United Nations Code of Conduct for Liner Conferences and trades not so governed. Only with respect to the latter does Regulation No 4055/86 allow Member States a period for adjustment, the deadline being 1 January 1993. In the case of trades governed by the Code of Conduct, no period is allowed for adjustment of such an agreement.
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1 Social policy - European Social Fund - Financial assistance for vocational training schemes - Improper use of funds - Nature of disciplinary measures under Community law - Not criminal penalties

(Council Regulation No 2950/83, Art. 6)

2 Member States - Obligations - Obligation to penalise infringements of Community law - Scope

(EC Treaty, Art. 5 (now Art. 10 EC))

Summary

1 Community legislation does not classify the improper use of assistance from the European Social Fund (ESF) as a criminal offence.

It is clear from Article 6 of Regulation No 2950/83 on the implementation of Decision 83/516 on the tasks of the ESF that the consequences of using ESF assistance in breach of the conditions set out in the decision of approval are not in the nature of criminal penalties.

2 Article 5 of the Treaty (now Article 10 EC) requires the Member States to take all measures necessary to guarantee the application and effectiveness of Community law and, accordingly, to take all effective measures to penalise conduct harmful to the financial interests of the Community where Community legislation does not specifically provide any penalty for infringement or refers for that purpose to national laws, regulations and administrative provisions. The same reasoning applies where Community legislation lays down particular penalties for infringement, but does not exhaustively list the penalties that the Member States may impose. In such cases, national measures may include criminal penalties even where the Community legislation only provides for civil sanctions to be imposed.

The penalty provided for by the national authorities must be analogous to that applicable to infringements of national law of similar nature and importance, and must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
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1 International agreements - EEC-Morocco Cooperation Agreement - Moroccan workers employed in a Member State - Social security - Equal treatment - Article 41(1) of the Agreement - Whether Article 41(1) may be relied upon by a member of the family of a Moroccan migrant worker who has acquired the nationality of the host Member State - Condition - Where the worker is regarded under the law of the host Member State as having retained Moroccan nationality - To be determined by the national court

(EEC-Morocco Cooperation Agreement, Art. 41(1))

2 International agreements - EEC-Morocco Cooperation Agreement - Moroccan workers employed in a Member State - Social security - Equal treatment - Article 41(1) of the Agreement - Members of the family of a Moroccan migrant worker - Meaning - Relatives in the ascending line of the worker and of his spouse - Whether covered - Condition - Must reside with the worker in the host Member State

(EEC-Morocco Cooperation Agreement, Art. 41(1))

Summary

1 A member of the family of a migrant worker of Moroccan nationality - where that worker has acquired the nationality of his host Member State before the date on which that member of his family began to live with him there and applied for a social security benefit under the legislation of that State - cannot rely on Article 41(1) of the EEC-Morocco Cooperation Agreement as a ground for invoking that worker's Moroccan nationality for the purposes of obtaining the benefit of the principle of equal treatment in the field of social security laid down in that provision.

Such a member of the family of a Moroccan migrant worker, where that worker also has the nationality of the host Member State, could invoke the worker's Moroccan nationality, for the purposes of the application of Article 41(1) of the Agreement, solely on the basis of the law of the Member State concerned, which it is for the national court alone, however, to interpret and apply in the proceedings before it.

2 The term `members of the family' (of a Moroccan migrant worker), within the meaning of Article 41(1) of the EEC-Morocco Cooperation Agreement - which confers the benefit of the principle of non-discrimination in the field of social security not only on the Moroccan migrant worker himself but also on members of his family living with him - also covers relatives in the ascending line of that worker and of his spouse who live with him in the host Member State.
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Freedom to provide services - Restrictions - National legislation reserving for certain bodies the right to take bets on sporting events - Justification - Protection of consumers and maintenance of order in society

(EC Treaty, Art. 59 (now, after amendment, Art. 49 EC))

Summary

$$National legislation which reserves for certain bodies the right to take bets on sporting events and which thus prevents operators in other Member States from taking bets, directly or indirectly, constitutes an obstacle to the freedom to provide services even if it applies without distinction.

However, in so far as such legislation does not entail any discrimination on grounds of nationality, it can be justified where its objectives are to protect consumers and to maintain order in society. Although it does not totally prohibit the taking of bets on sporting events but reserves it for certain bodies under certain circumstances, determination of the scope of the protection which a Member State intends providing in its territory in relation to lotteries and other forms of gambling falls within the margin of appreciation enjoyed by the national authorities. It is for those authorities to appraise whether, in the context of the aim pursued, it is necessary to prohibit activities of that kind, totally or partially, or only to restrict them and to lay down more or less rigorous procedures for controlling them. In those circumstances, the mere fact that a Member State has chosen a system of protection different from that adopted by another Member State cannot affect the appraisal as to the need for and proportionality of the provisions adopted. They must be assessed solely in the light of the objectives pursued by the national authorities of the Member State concerned and of the level of protection which they are intended to ensure.
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Approximation of laws - Cosmetic products - Packaging and labelling - Directive 76/768 - Measures to prevent advertising attributing to cosmetic products characteristics which they do not possess - Ban on the importing or marketing of a cosmetic product whose name includes the term `lifting' - Whether permissible - Condition - Whether such a name is misleading - To be assessed by the national courts

(EC Treaty, Arts 30 and 36 (now, after amendment, Arts 28 EC and 30 EC); Council Directive 76/768, Art. 6(3))

Summary

$$Article 6(3) of Directive 76/768 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to cosmetic products requires the Member States to take all measures necessary to ensure that, in the labelling, putting up for sale and advertising of cosmetic products, text, names, trade marks, pictures and figurative or other signs do not attribute to those products characteristics which they do not possess. Thus, on the one hand, that provision defines the measures to be taken in the interests of consumer protection and fair trading, which rank among the imperative requirements which may justify restrictions on the free movement of goods within the meaning of Article 30 of the Treaty (now, after amendment, Article 28 EC); on the other, it seeks to protect human health, within the meaning of Article 36 of the Treaty (now, after amendment, Article 30 EC), in so far as any information which is misleading as to the characteristics of such products could have an impact on public health.

Those provisions do not preclude the application of national legislation which prohibits the importation and marketing of a cosmetic product whose name incorporates the term `lifting' in cases where the average consumer, reasonably well informed and reasonably observant and circumspect, is misled by that name, believing it to imply that the product possesses characteristics which it does not have.

It is for the national court to decide, having regard to the presumed expectations of the average consumer, whether the name is misleading. Community law does not preclude the national court, should it experience particular difficulty in deciding whether or not the name at issue is misleading, from commissioning, in accordance with its national law, a survey of public opinion or an expert opinion for the purposes of clarification.

(see paras 24-25, 32 and operative part)
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1. Appeals - Pleas in law - Erroneous assessment of the facts - Inadmissible - Dismissed - Legal characterisation of the facts - Admissible

(EC Treaty, Art. 168a (now Art. 225 EC); EC Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 51, first para.)

2. Officials - Leave on personal grounds - Expiry - Reinstatement - Obligation of the administration - Extent

(Staff Regulations, Art. 40(4)(d))

3. Officials - Actions for damages - Leave on personal grounds - Expiry - Reinstatement - Failure - Damage - Assessment

(Staff Regulations, Art. 40(4)(d))

Summary

1. Under Article 168a of the Treaty (now Article 225 EC) and Article 51 of the Statute of the Court of Justice, an appeal is limited to points of law and must be based on the grounds of lack of competence of the Court of First Instance, breach of procedure before it which adversely affects the interests of the appellant, or infringement of Community law by the Court of First Instance.

An appeal may be based only on grounds relating to the infringement of rules of law, to the exclusion of any appraisal of the facts. The Court of First Instance has exclusive jurisdiction, first, to establish the facts except where the substantive inaccuracy of its findings is apparent from the documents submitted to it and, second, to assess those facts. When the Court of First Instance has established or assessed the facts, the Court of Justice has jurisdiction under Article 168a of the Treaty to review the legal characterisation of those facts by the Court of First Instance and the legal conclusions it has drawn from them.

( see paras 30-31 )

2. The obligation to reinstate at the first opportunity an official whose leave on personal grounds has expired is subject to no condition other than that which follows from Article 40(4)(d) of the Staff Regulations, namely a vacant post for which the official satisfies the requirements. Reinstatement does not depend on any additional condition such as an expression of interest by the official or whether he carries on a professional activity during his leave.

( see para. 35 )

3. In the context of non-contractual liability, the injured party must show reasonable diligence in limiting the extent of the damage.

To determine the damage suffered by an official on leave on personal grounds who has not been reinstated in the first vacant post for which he satisfies the requirements, the official must be considered solely responsible for the damage he suffers between the date of receiving an offer of a post proposing immediate reinstatement and the date of accepting it. To make the end of the period used to calculate the damage suffered correspond to the date of acceptance of the offer of a post would be to accept that an official may, by his failure to act, increase the damage he suffers, even though the institution which is at fault has taken all necessary steps to limit the damage flowing from its breach of Article 40(4)(d) of the Staff Regulations.

( see paras 56-57 )
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Approximation of laws - Copyright and related rights - Directive 93/83 - Satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission - Reception by a hotel establishment of television signals and their distribution by cable to its various rooms - Classification - Act of communication to the public or reception by the public - A question of national law

(Council Directive 93/83, Arts 1(2)(a) and 3)

Summary

$$The question whether the reception by a hotel establishment of satellite or terrestrial television signals and their distribution by cable to the various rooms of that hotel is an act of communication to the public or reception by the public is not governed by Directive 93/83 on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission, and must consequently be decided in accordance with national law.

( see para. 29 and operative part )
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1. Social policy - Men and women - Equal pay - Inconvenient hours for midwives - Whether to take into account for the purposes of comparison with clinical technicians' pay - Exclusion - Burden of proof where there is apparent discrimination

(EC Treaty Art. 119 (Arts 117 to 120 of the EC Treaty have been replaced by Arts 136 EC to 143 EC); Council Directive 75/117)

2. Social policy - Men and women - Equal pay - Reduction in working time accorded to midwives for work on a roster sytem and value of that reduction - Whether to take into account for the purposes of comparison with clinical technicians' pay - Exclusion - Reduction capable of being a factor justifying possible difference in pay - Burden of proof

(EC Treaty Art. 119 (Arts 117 to 120 of the EC Treaty have been replaced by Arts 136 EC to 143 EC); Council Directive 75/117)

Summary

1. The inconvenient-hours supplement paid to midwives that varies from month to month according to the part of the day during which the hours in question were worked and thus makes it difficult to make a meaningful comparison between, on the one hand, a midwife's salary and supplementary allowance, taken together, and, on the other hand, the basic salary of clinical technicians, is not to be taken into account in calculating the salary paid to the two groups which serves as the basis for a pay comparison for the purposes of Article 119 of the EC Treaty (Articles 117 to 120 of the EC Treaty were replaced by Articles 136 EC to 143 EC) and Directive 75/117.

If a difference in pay between the two groups compared is found to exist, and if the available statistical data indicate that there is a substantially higher proportion of women than men in the disadvantaged group, Article 119 of the Treaty requires the employer to justify the difference by objective factors unrelated to any discrimination on grounds of sex.

( see paras 45, 54, operative part 1 )

2. Neither the reduction in working time, by reference to the standard working time for day-work performed by clinical technicians, awarded in respect of work performed by midwives according to a three-shift roster, nor the value of such a reduction, are to be taken into consideration for the purpose of calculating the salary used as the basis for a pay comparison for the purposes of Article 119 of the Treaty (Articles 117 to 120 of the Treaty have been replaced by Articles 136 EC to 143 EC) and Directive 75/117.

However, such a reduction may constitute an objective reason unrelated to any discrimination on grounds of sex such as to justify a difference in pay. It is for the employer to show that such is in fact the case.

( see paras 63, operative part 2 )
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Tax provisions - Harmonisation of laws - Turnover taxes - Common system of value added tax - Deduction of input tax - Deduction of tax payable on goods and services supplied for the purpose of investment work intended to be used in connection with taxable transactions - Legislative amendment post-dating the supply of those goods or services but pre-dating the commencement of such operations which deprives the taxable person of the right to waive exemption thereof - Irrelevant in regard to the right to deduct - Protection of legitimate expectations - Legal certainty

(Council Directive 77/388, Art. 17)

Summary

$$Article 17 of the Sixth Directive 77/388 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes must be interpreted as meaning that a taxable person's right to deduct VAT paid in respect of goods or services supplied to him with a view to his carrying out certain letting operations is retained where a legislative amendment post-dating the supply of those goods or services but pre-dating the commencement of such operations deprives the taxable person concerned of the right to waive exemption thereof, even if the VAT was assessed subject to subsequent review. The principles of the protection of legitimate expectations and of legal certainty preclude his being deprived retroactively of that right by such a legislative amendment post-dating the supply of those goods or services.

( see paras 47, 53 and operative part )