Case C-133/03: Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunale Ordinario di Torino — Sezione del giudice per le indagini preliminari by order of that Court of 25 February 2003 in the criminal proceedings against Alessandro Nizza and Giacomo Pizzi
Date: 2003-06-07
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: access to information, balance sheet, firm governed by commercial law, interpretation of the law

C 135/12

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

7.6.2003

Spanish authorities to the Commission, it is clear that
various municipalities in the Baix Ter area have exceeded
on several occasions the maximum nitrate parameters
laid down in Directive 80/778/EEC,
in some cases
reaching extremely elevated concentrations.

Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunale
Ordinario di Torino — Sezione del giudice per le indagini
preliminari by order of that Court of 25 February 2003 in
the criminal proceedings against Alessandro Nizza and
Giacomo Pizzi

( 1) Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste (OJ 1975

L 194, p. 39).

( 2) Council Directive 91/156/EEC of 18 March 1991 amending

Directive 75/442/EEC on waste (OJ 1991 L 78, p. 32).

( 3) Council Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment
the effects of certain public and private projects on the

of
environment (OJ 1985 L 175, p. 40).

( 4) Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997 amending Directive 85/337/
EEC on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private
projects on the environment (OJ 1997 L 73, p. 5).

( 5) Council Directive 80/68/EEC of 17 December 1979 on the
protection of groundwater against pollution caused by certain
dangerous substances (OJ 1980 L 20, p. 43).

( 6) Council Directive 80/778/EEC of 15 July 1980 relating to the
quality of water intended for human consumption (OJ 1980
L 229, p. 11).

Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Consiglio di
Stato, Sezione Quarta by decision and order of that Court
of 28 January 2003 in the case of Ministry of Health
against Codacons and Federconsumatori, and concerning
Lega delle Cooperative

(Case C-132/03)

(2003/C 135/16)

Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
European Communities by decision and order of the Consiglio
di Stato, Sezione Quarta (Council of State, Fourth Chamber) of
28 January 2003, received at the Court Registry on 25 March
2003, for a preliminary ruling in the case of Ministry of Health
against Codacons and Federconsumatori, and concerning Lega
delle Cooperative on the following question:

Must Article 2(2)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1139/98 (1), as
amended by Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 49/2000 (2), apply
also to baby foods for infants and for young children of up to
three years of age, and, more specifically, in relation to such
products, must the adventitious contamination by material
derived from genetically modified organisms in a proportion
of no more than 1 % be indicated on the labelling?

( 1) OJ L 159 of 03.06.1998, p. 4.
( 2) OJ L 6 of 11.01.2000, p. 13.

(Case C-133/03)

(2003/C 135/17)

Reference has been made to the Court of
Justice of the
European Communities by order of the Tribunale Ordinario di
Torino — Sezione del giudice per le indagini preliminari
(Turin District Court, Chamber of the Investigating Judge) of
25 February 2003, received at the Court Registry on 25 March
2003, for a preliminary ruling in the criminal proceedings
against Alessandro Nizza and Giacomo Pizzi on the following
questions:

1. May Article 6 of Directive 68/151/EEC (1) be interpreted
as imposing an obligation upon the Member States to
establish appropriate penalties not only for failure on the
part of commercial companies to publish their balance
sheet and profit and loss statement but also for publishing
inaccurate versions of those statements or of other
company information addressed to shareholders or the
public or of any other information concerning their
economic, asset or financial position which they are
required to provide and which concern the company
itself or the group of companies to which it belongs?

the

in particular,

2. With reference to the obligation upon each Member State
to adopt ‘appropriate penalties’ for the infringements
provided for in the First Directive 68/151/EEC and the
Fourth Directive 78/660/EEC (2), must those directives
combined provisions of
and,
Article 44(2)(g) of the Treaty Establishing the European
Community, Article 2(1)(f) and Article 6 of the First
Directive and Article 2(2),
(3) and (4) of the Fourth
Directive, as amended by Directive 83/349/EEC (3) and
Directive 90/605/EEC (4), be interpreted as precluding the
legislation of a Member State under which no penalty
may be imposed for breach of the duty to publish true
and fair company documents and which lays down a
system of penalties which are not responsive to the
criteria of effectiveness, proportionality and deterrent
effect?

3. Must the directives mentioned, and in particular the
provisions of Article 44(2)(g) of the Treaty Establishing
the European Community, Article 2(1)(f) and Article 6 of
the First Directive and Article 2 (2), (3) and (4) of the
Fourth Directive, as amended by Directive 83/349/EEC
and Directive 90/605/EEC, be interpreted as precluding
the legislation of a Member State under which, in the case
of breach of the duty to publish true and fair company

7.6.2003

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 135/13

information, which is intended to protect ‘the interests of
shareholders and third parties’, permits only shareholders
and creditors to apply for the imposition of penalties, thus
depriving third parties generally of effective protection?

4. Must the directives mentioned, and in particular the
provisions of Article 44(2)(g) of the Treaty Establishing
the European Community, Article 2(1)(f) and Article 6 of
the First Directive and Article 2(2), (3) and (4) of the
Fourth Directive, as amended by Directive 83/349/EEC
and Directive 90/605/EEC, be interpreted as precluding
the legislation of a Member State under which, in the case
of breach of the duty to publish true and fair company
information, which is intended to protect ‘the interests of
shareholders and third parties’, lays down rules for the
prosecution of offences and a system of penalties which
are differentiated, reserving to cases where material
damage or loss is caused to shareholders or creditors the
right to submit a complaint and apply for the imposition
of sanctions and reserving to such cases sanctions which
are serious and effective?

( 1) OJ, English Special Edition 1968 (I), p. 41.
( 2) OJ L 222 of 14.08.1978, p. 11.
( 3) OJ L 193 of 18.07.1983, p. 1.
( 4) OJ L 317 of 16.11.1990, p. 60.

Article 9(1) of the directive (for which no provision is
made in the Austrian legal system) — save in cases of
urgency — where appeals against its decisions may be
lodged with the courts of public law only subject to the
following limitations: such appeals have no suspensory
effect from the outset and the courts are not barred from
taking a decision on appropriateness and are able merely
to annul the contested decision. Moreover, is one court
(the Verwaltungsgerichtshof — the Higher Administrative
Court) limited, as regards the findings of the facts, to
an examination of conclusiveness, and the other (the
Verfassungsgerichtshof — the Constitutional Court) also
limited to an examination of the infringement of rights
guaranteed by the constitution?

2. Are the guarantees of judicial protection provided by
the directive referred to in
Articles 8 and 9(1) of
paragraph 1 to be applied to Turkish nationals who enjoy
legal status under Article 6 or Article 7 of Decision No 1/
80 of the Association Council — set up by the Agreement
establishing an Association between the European Econ-
omic Community and Turkey — of 19 September 1980
on the development of the Association (‘the Association
Council decision’)?

(1) OJ L 56 of 04.04.1964, p. 850.

Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Verwaltungsge-
richtshof by order of that Court of 18 March 2003 in the
joint appeals lodged by (1) Georg Dörr and by (2) Ibrahim
Ünal

(Case C-136/03)

(2003/C 135/18)

Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
European Communities by order of the Verwaltungsgerichts-
hof (Higher Administrative Court [Austria]) of 18 March 2003,
received at the Court Registry on 26 March 2003, for a
preliminary ruling in the joint appeals lodged by (1) Georg
Dörr and by (2) Ibrahim Ünal on the following questions:

1. Are Articles 8 and 9 of Council Directive 64/221/EEC of
25 February 1964 (1) on the co-ordination of special
measures concerning the movement and residence of
foreign nationals which are justified on grounds of public
policy, public security or public health (‘the directive’)
to be interpreted as meaning that the administrative
authorities may not — notwithstanding the existence of
an internal appeal facility — take a decision ordering
expulsion from the territory without obtaining an opinion
from a competent authority within the meaning of

Action brought on 27 March 2003 by Italian Republic
against Commission of the European Communities

(Case C-138/03)

(2003/C 135/19)

An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of Justice of the European
Communities on 27 March 2003 by the Italian Republic,
represented by Umberto Leanza, acting as Agent, assisted by
Ivo Maria Braguglia and Antonio Cingolo, Avvocati dello
Stato, with an address for service in Luxembourg.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

— annul the memorandum of 20 January 2003 No 100629
(doc. 19), received on 21 January 2003, by which the
Commission’s Directorate General Regional Policy —
Regional intervention in France, Greece, Italy, communi-
cated its decision to deduct part of the amount requested
by way of assistance in the context of the POP ‘Ricerca,
Sviluppo Tecnologico e Alta Formazione’
(Research,
Technological development and Higher Education) 2000-
2006; the memorandum of 3 March 2003 No 102627
(doc. 21) quantifying the amount to be deducted; and all
other measures connected therewith and entailed thereby;