COMMUNITY TO APPEAR BECAUSE IT COMPRISES SEVERAL INSTITUTIONS AND BECAUSE OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF BUDGETARY AND FINANCIAL POWERS AMONG THESE INSTITUTIONS .
THE REGULATIONS WERE ADOPTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROCEDURE LAID DOWN BY ARTICLE 212 OF THE TREATY BY THE AUTHORITIES DESIGNATED FOR THE PURPOSE, AND THE INSTITUTIONS ARE BOUND BY THEIR PROVISIONS; THEREFORE THE COURT'S INTERPRETATION OF THE REGULATIONS APPLIES EQUALLY TO ALL THE INSTITUTIONS OF THE COMMUNITY .
MOREOVER, THE FORCE OF RES JUDICATA PREVENTS RIGHTS CONFIRMED BY A JUDGMENT OF THE COURT FROM BEING DISPUTED ANEW . SINCE THE COMMUNITY IS A SINGLE ENTITY, IT IS INCONCEIVABLE THAT JUDGMENT OF THE COURT WHICH HAS THE FORCE OF RES JUDICATA WITH REGARD TO AN INSTITUTION - IN THIS CASE THE COMMISSION - SHOULD NOT HAVE THE SAME FORCE WITH REGARD TO THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE .
FOR THESE REASONS THE APPLICATIONS MUST BE REGARDED AS BEING MADE AGAINST THE COMMISSION AND THERE IS, MOREOVER, NO REASON TO HOLD THEM TO BE INADMISSIBLE .
THE SUBSTANCE
THE APPLICANTS SEEK, FIRST, THE ANNULMENT OF THEIR ESTABLISHMENT IN GRADE A 4 .
ARTICLE 102, PARAGRAPHS 1 TO 4 OF WHICH WERE INCORPORATED IN FULL IN ANNEX X TO THE NEW STAFF REGULATIONS OF OFFICIALS OF THE ECSC, WAS DESIGNED TO FIX UNIFORM STANDARDS NOT MERELY IN RELATION TO SERVANTS ENGAGED UNDER THE SO-CALLED ' BRUSSELS CONTRACTS ' BUT, IN CERTAIN RESPECTS, ALSO FOR ESTABLISHED OFFICIALS AND OTHER SERVANTS ENGAGED UNDER THE OLD ECSC PROVISIONS .
ONE OF THESE COMMON STANDARDS SECURES FOR ALL SERVANTS OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ESTABLISHED UNDER THIS SCHEME RECOGNITION OF THE POSITION ACCORDED THEM PRIOR TO THE ENTRY INTO FORCE OF THE REGULATIONS ( EXCEPT IN THE PARTICULAR CASE MENTIONED BY THE SECOND PARAGRAPH OF THAT ARTICLE ); THIS WILL BE ACCOMPLISHED BY MORE OR LESS AUTOMATICALLY TRANSPOSING THE GRADE AND STEP PREVIOUSLY ACCORDED TO THEM, WHETHER EXPRESSLY OR BY IMPLICATION, INTO THE TABLE REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 66 OF THE REGULATIONS .
BEFORE THE PRESENT REGULATIONS ENTERED INTO FORCE, SERVANTS ENGAGED UNDER THE SO-CALLED ' BRUSSELS CONTRACTS ' COULD NOT, IN THE ABSENCE OF ANY REGULATIONS GOVERNING THEIR POSITION, BE ALLOCATED A GRADE AND STEP EXCEPT BY ANALOGY WITH THE SYSTEM PREVAILING IN THE ECSC .
CONSEQUENTLY IT IS QUITE CORRECT TO MAINTAIN THAT THE POSITION OF SUCH SERVANTS IS COVERED BY THE PROVISION IN ARTICLE 102 WHICH REFERS TO GRADES AND STEPS ' IMPLIEDLY ' ACCORDED, THAT IS TO SAY, THE GRADE AND STEP ACCORDED BY IMPLICATION BY ANALOGY WITH THE ECSC RULES . IN FACT, THIS PROVISION REFERS ONLY TO THE PREVIOUS GRADE AND STEP, AS FAR AS ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICIALS IS CONCERNED .
WHEN CARRYING OUT THE PROCESS OF ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICIALS PROVIDED FOR BY ARTICLE 102, THE ADMINISTRATION IS NOT BOUND TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT, IN THIS FIRST STAGE OF INTEGRATING SERVANTS INTO THE SCHEME SET UP BY THE STAFF REGULATIONS, ANY POSSIBLE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GRADE ATTRIBUTED BY THIS MEANS TO EACH SERVANT AND THE GRADE WHICH PROPERLY CORRESPONDS