Action brought on 19 February 2004 by Jean-Pierre Castets against Commission of the European Communities
Date: 2004-04-17
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: European Commission, European official, action for annulment (EU), paid leave, sick leave

17.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 94/65

Pleas in law and main arguments:

The applicants claim that the Court should:

Applicant for the Com-
munity trade mark:

Société des Produits Nestlé S.A.

Community trade mark
concerned:

Figurative trade mark ‘QUICKY’ —
application No 467 746, filed for
products in Classes 29 (meat etc.),
30 (coffee etc.) and 32 (mineral
waters etc.)

Proprietor of the trade
mark or sign entering
opposition:

QUICK RESTAURANTS, a public
constituted
limited
under Belgian law

company

— Annul

the decision of 9 December 2003 whereby the
appointing authority rejected complaint No R/456/03
formulated by the applicant on 29 July 2003;

— Order the Office for the administration and payment of
individual entitlements of
the European Commission to
recalculate the number of days' annual leave not taken by
the applicant on the date on which he left the service and
to adjust,
in accordance with the second paragraph of
Article 4 of Annex V to the Staff Regulations, payment for
the 31 days not taken in 2002, plus interest at the applic-
able rate;

Trade mark or sign on
of which
the
opposition was made:

basis

National and international word
and figurative trade marks ‘QUICK’
and ‘QUICKIES’

— Order the Commission to pay the costs.

Decision of the Opposi-
tion Division:

Registration refused

Decision of
of Appeal:

the Board

Appeal dismissed

Pleas in law relied on:

Wrongful application of Article
8(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 40/
94 (1). The applicant claims that
the trade marks in question are
not phonetically and conceptually
similar.

(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 40/94 of 20 December 1993

on the Community trade mark (OJ 1994 L 11, p.1)

Action brought on 19 February 2004 by Jean-Pierre
Castets against Commission of the European Communities

(Case T-80/04)

(2004/C 94/162)

(Language of the case: French)

An action against the Commission of the European Commu-
nities was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 19 February 2004 by Jean-Pierre
Castets, residing in Saint Victor Des Oules (France), represented
by Grégory Crétin, lawyer.

Pleas in law and main arguments

The applicant in the present case, who was retired and awarded
an invalidity pension, disputes the number of days of leave in
respect of which he received compensation when he left the
service.

In support of his claims, he alleges that it follows from the
applicable provisions of the Staff Regulations that:

— the conclusions of the Heads of Administration No 53A/70
of 9 January 1970, which limit to 12 working days the
amount of annual leave that can be carried forward, even in
the event of prolonged sickness, cannot be applied, since
they are contrary to the applicable provisions of the statute;

— an official on sick leave cannot apply to carry forward days
of annual leave, since such an act is a step of an occupa-
tional nature which an official on sick leave is not required
to carry out;

— an official who has not used up his annual

leave upon
leaving the service is entitled, without any limit, to payment
of compensation for the whole of his annual leave which
could not be used up owing to the needs of the service;

— the fact of being on sick leave for a full year clearly consti-
tutes a need of the service which justifies days of leave in
excess of 12 days being carried forward.