Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 23 October 2001 in Case C-510/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Tribunal de grande instance de Grenoble (France)): criminal proceedings against Xavier Tridon, third parties: Fédération départementale des chasseurs de l'Isère and Fédération Rhône-Alpes de protection de la nature (Frapna), section Isère (Wild fauna and flora — Endangered species — Application in the Community of the Washington Convention)
Date: 2001-12-08
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: export monitoring, interpretation of the law, protected species, protection of animal life, protection of plant life, trade restriction

C 348/6

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

8.12.2001

Directives 70/524/EEC, 74/63/EEC, 79/373/EEC and
82/471/EEC, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil
its
obligations under that Directive;

2. Orders the Hellenic Republic to pay the costs.

the Chamber, N. Colneric, C. Gulmann (Rapporteur),
J.-P. Puissochet and R. Schintgen,
Judges; C. Stix-Hackl,
Advocate General; H.A. Rühl, Principal Administrator, for the
Registrar, has given a judgment on 23 October 2001, in which
it has ruled:

(1) OJ C 47 of 19.2.2000.

1. As regards species covered by Appendix I to the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora, concluded in Washington on 3 March 1973, Council
Regulation (EEC) No 3626/82 of 3 December 1982 on the
implementation in the Community of
the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora must be interpreted as not precluding legislation of a
Member State which lays down a general prohibition in its
territory of all commercial use of captive born and bred
specimens.

As regards species covered by Annex A to Council Regulation
(EC) No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the protection of
species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein, that
Regulation must be interpreted as not precluding legislation of
a Member State which lays down a general prohibition in its
territory of all commercial use of captive born and bred
specimens.

2. As regards species covered by Appendix II to the Convention,
Regulation (EEC) No 3626/82 does not prohibit the commer-
cial use of specimens of those species, apart from the case
referred to in Article 6(2) where the specimens have been
introduced contrary to Article 5 of that Regulation.

As regards species covered by Annex B to Regulation (EEC)
No 338/97, that Regulation does not prohibit the commercial
use of specimens of those species, provided that the conditions
laid down in Article 8(5) of that Regulation are met.

Those regulations preclude legislation of a Member State imposing a
general prohibition in its territory of all commercial use of captive
born and bred specimens of those species, in so far as it applies to
specimens imported from other Member States, if it is apparent that
the objective of protection of the latter, as referred to in Article 15 of
Regulation (EEC) No 3626/82 or Article 36 of the EC Treaty (now,
after amendment, Article 30 EC), may be achieved just as effectively
by measures which are less restrictive of intra-Community trade.

(1) OJ C 47 of 19.2.2000.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Sixth Chamber)

of 23 October 2001

in Case C-510/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
the Tribunal de grande instance de Grenoble (France)):
criminal proceedings against Xavier Tridon, third parties:
Fédération départementale des chasseurs de l’Isère and
Fédération Rhône-Alpes de protection de la nature (Frap-
na), section Isère (1)

(Wild fauna and flora — Endangered species — Application
in the Community of the Washington Convention)

(2001/C 348/10)

(Language of the case: French)

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

In Case C-510/99: reference to the Court under Article 234
EC from the Tribunal de grande instance de Grenoble (Regional
(France) for a preliminary ruling in the
Court, Grenoble)
criminal proceedings pending before that court against Xavier
Tridon, third parties: Fédération départementale des chasseurs
de l’Isère and Fédération Rhône-Alpes de protection de la
nature (Frapna), section Isère — on the interpretation of
Articles 30 and 36 of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment,
Articles 28 EC and 30 EC), Council Regulation (EEC)
No 3626/82 of 3 December 1982 on the implementation in
the Community of the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (OJ 1982 L 384,
p. 1), in particular Articles 6 and 15, Council Regulation (EC)
No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the protection of species
of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein (OJ 1997
L 61, p. 1) and the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora concluded in
Washington on 3 March 1973,
in particular Articles VII
and XIV — the Court, composed of: F. Macken, President of