Case C-78/08: Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Corte Suprema di Cassazione (Italy) lodged on 25 February 2008 — Amministrazione delle Finanze, Agenzia delle Entrate v Paint Graphos Scarl
Date: 2008-02-25
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: State aid, company law, competition law, control of State aid, cooperative, interpretation of the law, misuse of a right, tax relief

9.5.2008

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 116/11

Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Corte Suprema
di Cassazione (Italy)
lodged on 25 February 2008 —
Amministrazione delle Finanze, Agenzia delle Entrate v
Paint Graphos Scarl

Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Corte Suprema
di Cassazione (Italy) lodged on 25 February 2008 — Adige
Carni Scrl, in liquidation v Ministero dell' Economia e delle
Finanze, Agenzia delle Entrate

(Case C-78/08)

(2008/C 116/19)

(Case C-79/08)

(2008/C 116/20)

Language of the case: Italian

Language of the case: Italian

Referring court

The Corte Suprema di Cassazione

Referring court

The Corte Suprema di Cassazione

Parties to the main proceedings

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellants: Amministrazione delle Finanze, Agenzia delle Entrate

Appellant: Adige Carni Scrl, in liquidation

Respondent: Paint Graphos Scarl

Respondents: Ministero dell' Economia e delle Finanze, Agenzia
delle Entrate

Questions referred

Questions referred

1. Are the tax relief measures for cooperative societies, pursuant
to Articles 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 of Presidential Decree
No 601 of 1973, compatible with the rules on competition
and, in particular, are they classifiable as state aid within the
meaning of Article 87 EC, especially given that the system of
monitoring and for the prevention of abuse provided for
under Legislative Decree No 1577 of 1947 is inadequate?

1. Are the tax relief measures for cooperative societies, pursuant
to Articles 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 of Presidential Decree
No 601 of 1973, compatible with the rules on competition
and, in particular, are they classifiable as state aid within the
meaning of Article 87 EC, especially given that the system of
monitoring and for the prevention of abuse provided for
under Legislative Decree No 1577 of 1947 is inadequate?

2. In particular, for the purposes of determining whether the
tax relief measures at issue are classifiable as state aid, can
those measures be regarded as proportionate in relation to
the objectives of cooperative undertakings; can the decision
on proportionality take into consideration not only the indi-
vidual measure but also the advantage conferred by the
measures as a whole, with the resulting distortion of compe-
tition?

2. In particular, for the purposes of determining whether the
tax relief measures at issue are classifiable as state aid, can
those measures be regarded as proportionate in relation to
the objectives of cooperative undertakings; can the decision
on proportionality take into consideration not only the indi-
vidual measure but also the advantage conferred by the
measures as a whole, with the resulting distortion of compe-
tition?

3. For the purposes of the answer to the preceding questions,
taking account of the fact that the system of monitoring has
been seriously and further undermined by the reform of
company law, above all in relation to cooperatives that are
predominantly rather than fully mutual, under Law No 311
of 2004, and regardless of whether the tax relief measures in
question can be classified as state aid, can the use of the legal
form of a cooperative society, even in cases not involving
fraud or deception, be regarded as an abuse of law, where
that form is used solely or predominantly in order to achieve
a tax saving?

3. For the purposes of the answer to the preceding questions,
taking account of the fact that the system of monitoring has
been seriously and further undermined by the reform of
company law, above all in relation to cooperatives that are
predominantly rather than fully mutual, under Law No 311
of 2004, and regardless of whether the tax relief measures in
question can be classified as state aid, can the use of the legal
form of a cooperative society, even in cases not involving
fraud or deception, be regarded as an abuse of law, where
that form is used solely or predominantly in order to achieve
a tax saving?