Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 24 June 2004 in Case C-269/02: Commission of the European Communities v French Republic (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Failure to implement Directive 98/24/EC within the prescribed period — Protection of the health and safety of workers — Risks linked to chemical agents at work)
Date: 2004-08-28
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: France, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, chemical product, environmental risk prevention, occupational health, occupational safety

28.8.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 217/3

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Third Chamber)

of 24 June 2004

(Second Chamber)

of 1 July 2004

in Case C-269/02: Commission of the European Commu-
nities v French Republic (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Failure to
implement Directive 98/24/EC within the prescribed period
— Protection of the health and safety of workers — Risks
linked to chemical agents at work)

in Case C-295/02 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
the Niedersächsisches Oberverwaltungsgericht): Gisela
Gerken v Amt für Agrarstruktur Verden (1)

(Common agricultural policy — Integrated administration
and control system for certain Community aid schemes —
Regulations (EEC) No 3887/92 and (EC) No 2419/2001 —
Applications for ‘livestock’ aid — Irregularities — Reduction
in the amount of aid — Article 2(2) of Regulation (EC,
Euratom) No 2988/95 — Retroactive application of a less
stringent provision)

(2004/C 217/04)

(2004/C 217/05)

(Language of the case: French)

(Language of the case: German)

In Case C-269/02: Commission of the European Communities
(Agent: D. Martin) v French Republic (Agents: G. de Bergues
and C. Lemaire, assisted by C. Bergeot-Nunes) — application
for a declaration that, by not bringing into force the laws, regu-
lations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with
Council Directive 98/24/EC of 7 April 1998 on the protection
of the health and safety of workers from the risks related to
chemical agents at work (fourteenth individual Directive within
the meaning of Article 16(1) of Directive 89/391/EEC) or, in
any event, by not giving notice of
those measures to the
Commission, the French Republic has failed to fulfil its obliga-
(Third Chamber),
tions under that directive — the Court
the Third
composed of: A. Rosas, acting as President of
Chamber, R. Schintgen and K. Schiemann (Rapporteur), Judges;
A. Tizzano, Advocate General; R. Grass, Registrar, has given a
judgment on 24 June 2004, in which it:

1. Declares that, by not bringing into force the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply with Council Direc-
tive 98/24/EC of 7 April 1998 on the protection of the health
and safety of workers from the risks related to chemical agents at
work (fourteenth individual Directive within the meaning of
Article 16(1) of Directive 89/391/EEC), the French Republic has
failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive;

2. Orders the French Republic to pay the costs.

(1) OJ C 219 of 14.9.2002.

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

In Case C-295/02: Reference to the Court under Article 234 EC
from the Niedersächsisches Oberverwaltungsgericht (Germany)
for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that
für Agrarstruktur
court between Gisela Gerken and Amt
Verden — on the interpretation of Article 10(2)(a) of Commis-
sion Regulation (EEC) No 3887/92 of 23 December 1992
laying down detailed rules for applying the integrated adminis-
tration and control system for certain Community aid schemes
(OJ 1992 L 391, p. 36), Articles 44, 53 and 54 of Commission
Regulation (EC) No 2419/2001 of 11 December 2001 laying
down detailed rules for applying the integrated administration
and control system for certain Community aid schemes estab-
lished by Council Regulation (EEC) No 3508/92 (OJ 1992 L
327, p. 11), and Article 2(2) of Council Regulation (EC,
Euratom) No 2988/95 of 18 December 1995 on the protection
of the financial
interests of the European Communities (OJ
1995 L 312, p. 1) — the Court (Second Chamber), composed
of: C.W.A. Timmermans, President of the Chamber, J.-P. Puisso-
chet, R. Schintgen, F. Macken (Rapporteur) and N. Colneric,
Judges; P. Léger, Advocate General; M.-F. Contet, Principal
Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 1
July 2004, in which it has ruled:

Article 2(2) of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 of
18 December 1995 on the protection of the financial interests of the
European Communities is to be interpreted as meaning that where, in
an application for ‘livestock’ aid covered ratione temporis by Commis-
sion Regulation (EEC) No 3887/92 of 23 December 1992 laying
integrated administration
down detailed rules

for applying the