Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 14 October 2004 in Case C36/02 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Bundesverwaltungsgericht): Omega Spielhallen- und Automatenaufstellungs-GmbH v Oberbürgermeisterin der Bundesstadt Bonn (Freedom to provide services — Free movement of goods — Restrictions — Public policy — Human dignity — Protection of fundamental values laid down in the national constitution — ‘Playing at killing’)
Date: 2004-12-04
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: free movement of goods, freedom to provide services, gaming establishment, homicide, interpretation of the law, violence

4.12.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 300/3

— when hearing a case between individuals the national court is
required, when applying the provisions of domestic
law
adopted for the purpose of transposing obligations laid down
by a directive, to consider the whole body of rules of national
law and to interpret them, so far as possible, in the light of
the wording and purpose of the directive in order to achieve an
outcome consistent with the objective pursued by the directive.
the national court must thus do
In the main proceedings,
the
jurisdiction to ensure
lies within its
whatever
maximum period of weekly working time, which is set at 48
hours by Article 6(2) of Directive 93/104, is not exceeded.

that

2. Orders the Commission of the European Communities to pay the

costs;

3. Orders

the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern

Ireland to bear its own costs.

(1) OJ C 68 of 16.3.2002.

(1) OJ C 3 of 5.1.2002.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(sitting as a full Court)

of 5 October 2004

in Case C-475/01: Commission of the European Commu-
nities v Hellenic Republic (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Infringe-
ment of the first paragraph of Article 90 EC — Excise duty
on alcohol and alcoholic beverages — Application to ouzo of
a rate lower than that applied to other alcoholic beverages —
Compliance of that rate with a directive which was not chal-
lenged within the time-limit laid down in Article 230 EC)

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(First Chamber)

of 14 October 2004

in Case C36/02 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
the Bundesverwaltungsgericht): Omega Spielhallen- und
Automatenaufstellungs-GmbH v Oberbürgermeisterin der
Bundesstadt Bonn (1)

(Freedom to provide services — Free movement of goods —
Restrictions — Public policy — Human dignity — Protection
of fundamental values laid down in the national constitution
— ‘Playing at killing’)

(2004/C 300/05)

(Language of the case: German)

(2004/C 300/04)

(Language of the case: Greek)

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

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

In Case C-475/01: Action under Article 226 EC for failure to
fulfil obligations, brought on 6 December 2001, Commission
of the European Communities (Agents: E. Traversa and M.
Kondou Durande), supported by United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland (Agent: K. Manji) v Hellenic
Republic (Agents: A. Samoni-Rantou and P. Milonopoulos) —
the Court (sitting as a full Court), composed of: V. Skouris,
President, P. Jann, C.W.A. Timmermans, A. Rosas, C. Gulmann,
J.-P. Puissochet and J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, Presidents of Cham-
bers, R. Schintgen, F. Macken, N. Colneric and S. von Bahr
(Rapporteur), Judges; A. Tizzano, Advocate General; L. Hewlett,
Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment
on 5 October 2004, in which it:

In Case C-36/02: reference for a preliminary ruling under
Article 234 EC from the Bundesverwaltungsgericht (Germany),
made by decision of 24 October 2001, received at the Court
in the proceedings between Omega
on 12 February 2002,
Spielhallen- und Automatenaufstellungs-GmbH and Oberbür-
germeisterin der Bundesstadt Bonn — the Court
(First
Chamber), composed of: P. Jann, President of the Chamber, A.
Rosas (Rapporteur), R. Silva de Lapuerta, K. Lenaerts and S. von
Judges; C. Stix-Hackl, Advocate General; M.-F. Contet,
Bahr,
Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment
on 14 October 2004, in which it has ruled:

Community law does not preclude an economic activity consisting of
the commercial exploitation of games simulating acts of homicide
from being made subject to a national prohibition measure adopted
on grounds of protecting public policy by reason of the fact that that
activity is an affront to human dignity.

1. Dismisses the action;

(1) OJ C 109 of 4.5.2002.