Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 9 September 2004 in Case C-195/02: Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of Spain (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Directive 91/439/EEC — Driving licences — Mutual recognition — Compulsory registration and exchange — Conditions for the renewal of licences issued prior to the transposition of the directive)
Date: 2004-10-23
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: European Commission, Spain, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, driving licence, technical standard, traffic regulations

23.10.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 262/3

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(First Chamber)

of 9 September 2004

(Second Chamber)

of 9 September 2004

in Joined Cases C-184/02 and C-223/02: Kingdom of Spain
and Republic of Finland v European Parliament and
Council of the European Union (1)

in Case C-195/02: Commission of the European Commu-
nities v Kingdom of Spain (1)

(Directive 2002/15/CE — Organisation of the working time
of road transport workers — Self-employed drivers — Legal
basis — Freedom to pursue an occupation — Principle of
equal treatment — Proportionality — Obligation to state
reasons)

(2004/C 262/04)

(Languages of the case: Spanish and Finnish)

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

In Joined Cases C-184/02 and C-223/02: actions for annulment
under Article 230 EC brought on 16 May and 12 June 2002,
Kingdom of Spain (Agents: R. Silva de Lapuerta and subse-
quently N. Díaz Abad)
in Case C-184/02 and Republic of
Finland (Agent: T. Pynnä) in Case C-223/02 v European Parlia-
ment (Agents: M. Gómez-Leal and C. Pennera (C-184/02) and
H. von Hertzen and G. Ricci (C-223/02)) and Council of the
European Union (Agents: A. Lopes Sabino and G.-L. Ramos
Ruano (C-184/02) and A. Lopes Sabino and H. Erno (C-223/
02)), supported by Commission of the European Communities
(Agents: F. Castillo de la Torre and W. Wils (C-184/02) and M.
Huttunen and W. Wils
(First
Chamber), composed of: P. Jann, President of the Chamber, A.
Rosas, S. von Bahr, K. Lenaerts (Rapporteur), and K. Schie-
mann,
Judges; C. Stix-Hackl, Advocate General; M. Múgica
Arzamendi, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, gave a
judgment on 9 September 2004, in which it:

(C-223/02)) — the Court

1. Dismisses the actions;

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Directive
91/439/EEC — Driving licences — Mutual recognition —
Compulsory registration and exchange — Conditions for the
renewal of licences issued prior to the transposition of the
directive)

(2004/C 262/05)

(Language of the case: Spanish)

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

In Case C-195/02: action under Article 226 EC for failure to
fulfil obligations brought on 27 May 2002 by Commission of
the European Communities (Agents: F. Castillo de la Torre and
W. Wils) against Kingdom of Spain (Agent: N. Díaz Abad),
supported by Kingdom of the Netherlands (Agents: H.G. Seven-
ster and S. Terstal) and by United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland (Agents: P. Ormond, assisted by A.
Robertson) — the Court
(Second Chamber), composed of:
C.W.A. Timmermans, President of the Chamber, J.-P Puissochet,
R. Schintgen (Rapporteur), F. Macken and N. Colneric, Judges;
P. Léger, Advocate General; M. Múgica Arzamendi, Principal
Administrator, gave a judgment on 9 September 2004,
in
which it:

1. Declares that, by adopting Articles 22 to 24 and 25(2) of the
Reglamento de conductores (Regulations on Drivers), of 30 May
1977, and also the seventh transitional provision of those regula-
tions, the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations
under Articles 1(2) and 7(1)(a) of, and point 4 of Annex I to,
Council Directive 91/439/EEC of 29 July 1991 on driving
licences, as amended by Council Directive 96/47/EC of 23 July
1996;

2. Orders the applicants to bear their own costs and pay those of the

defendants;

2. Orders the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs;

3. Orders the Commission to bear its own costs.

3. Orders the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to bear their own costs.

(1) OJ C 169 of 13.7.2002.
OJ C 202 of 24.8.2002.

(1) OJ C 191 of 10.8.2002.