Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 10 May 2001 in Case C-203/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Højesteret): Henning Veedfald v Århus Amtskommune (Approximation of laws — Directive 85/374/EEC — Liability for defective products — Exemption from liability — Conditions)
Date: 2001-07-14
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: defective product, health care, health policy, interpretation of the law, organ transplantation, producer's liability

14.7.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 200/13

1. Declares that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary for the full transposition
into national law of Articles 4(2) and 5 of Council Directive
93/13/EEC of 5 April 1993 on unfair terms in consumer
contracts, the Kingdom of the Netherlands has failed to fulfil
its obligations under that Directive;

2. Orders the Kingdom of the Netherlands to pay the costs.

(1) OJ C 226 of 7.8.1999.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Fifth Chamber)

of 10 May 2001

in Case C-203/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
the Højesteret): Henning Veedfald v Århus Amtskommu-
ne (1)

(Approximation of laws — Directive 85/374/EEC — Liab-
ility for defective products — Exemption from liability —
Conditions)

(2001/C 200/23)

2. Article 7(c) of Directive 85/374 is to be interpreted as meaning
that the exemption from liability where an activity has no
economic or business purpose does not extend to the case of a
defective product which has been manufactured and used in the
course of a specific medical service which is financed entirely
from public funds and for which the patient is not required to
pay any consideration.

3. Article 9 of Directive 85/374 is to be interpreted as meaning
that,
save for non-material damage whose reparation is
governed solely by national law and the exclusions detailed in
that article as regards damage to an item of property, a Member
State may not restrict the types of material damage, resulting
from death or from personal injury, or from damage to or
destruction of an item of property, which are to be made good.

4.

The national court is required, under Directive 85/374, to
examine under which head the circumstances of the case are to
be categorised, namely whether the case concerns damage
covered either by point (a) or by point (b) of the first paragraph
of Article 9 or non-material damage which may possibly be
covered by national law. The national court may, however, not
decline to award any damages at all under the Directive on the
ground that, where the other conditions of liability are fulfilled,
the damage incurred is not such as to fall under any of the
foregoing heads.

(1) OJ C 226 of 7.8.1999.

(Language of the case: Danish)

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
in the European Court Reports)

In Case C-203/99: reference to the Court under Article 177 of
the EC Treaty (now Article 234 EC) from the Højesteret
(Supreme Court) (Denmark) for a preliminary ruling in the
proceedings pending before that court between Henning
Veedfald and Århus Amtskommune — on the interpretation
of Article 7(a) and (c) and points (a) and (b) of the first
paragraph of Article 9 of Council Directive 85/374/EEC of
25 July 1985 on the approximation of the laws, regulations
and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning
liability for defective products (OJ 1985 L 210, p. 29) — the
Court (Fifth Chamber), composed of: A. La Pergola, President
of the Chamber, M. Wathelet, D.A.O. Edward, P. Jann (Rappor-
teur) and L. Sevo´ n, Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate
General; H. von Holstein, Deputy Registrar, for the Registrar,
has given a judgment on 10 May 2001, in which it has ruled:

1. Article 7(a) of Council Directive 85/374/EEC of 25 July
1985 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions of the Member States concerning
liability for defective products is to be interpreted as meaning
that a defective product is put into circulation when it is used
during the provision of a specific medical service, consisting in
preparing a human organ for transplantation, and the damage
caused to the organ results from that preparatory treatment.

(Fifth Chamber)

of 10 May 2001

in Joined Cases C-223/99 and C-260/99 (reference for a
preliminary ruling from the Tribunale amministrativo
regionale per la Lombardia): Agorà Srl v Ente Autonomo
Fiera Internazionale di Milano, and between Excelsior
Snc di Pedrotti Bruna & C. and Ente Autonomo Fiera
Internazionale di Milano, Ciftat soc. coop. arl (1)

(Public service contracts — Definition of contracting auth-
orities — Body governed by public law)

(2001/C 200/24)

(Language of the case: Italian)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
in the European Court Reports)

In Joined Cases C-223/99 and C-260/99: reference to the
Court under Article 234 EC from the Tribunale amministrativo
regionale (Regional Administrative Court) per la Lombardia