CELEX: C2002/202/25
Language: en
Date: 2002-08-24 00:00:00
Title: Case C-261/02: Action brought on 15 July 2002 by the Commission of the European Communities against the French Republic

24.8.2002              EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                      C 202/17
—     Failure to comply with statutory pro-                              b.     Order the French Republic to pay into the account ‘own
      visions                                                                   resources of the EC’ of the Commission of the European
                                                                                Communities a penalty payment of EUR 242 650 in
                                                                                respect of each day’s delay in implementing the measures
The Court of First Instance incorrectly held that, pursuant to                  necessary to comply with the judgment in Case C-239/
Article 40(4)(d) of the Staff Regulations, on expiry of his leave               98 Commission v France;
on personal grounds, the appellant must be ‘reinstated in the
first post corresponding to his grade which falls vacant in his
category or service provided that he satisfies the requirements
                                                                         c.     Order the French Republic to pay the costs.
for that post’. An official who is seriously ill clearly does not
satisfy the requirements for reinstatement.
(1) Not yet published in the European Court Reports.
                                                                         Pleas in law and main arguments
                                                                         Although Article 228 EC does not specify the period available
                                                                         to the Member State to comply with its obligations, it is none
                                                                         the less the case that implementation of the judgment must be
Action brought on 15 July 2002 by the Commission of                      initiated immediately and be completed as quickly as possible.
 the European Communities against the French Republic                    In the present case, all the provisions and measures necessary
                                                                         for the French Republic to bring its legislation into conformity
                                                                         with the judgment of the Court should long since have been
                          (Case C-261/02)                                adopted and have entered into force; at the time of the
                                                                         Commission’s reasoned opinion, almost a year had already
                                                                         passed since the Court’s judgment. The texts communicated
                         (2002/C 202/25)                                 by the French authorities subsequent to the reply to the
                                                                         reasoned opinion still represent merely a very fragmented and
                                                                         unsatisfactory implementation of the judgment of 16 Decem-
                                                                         ber 1999.
An action against the French Republic was brought before the
Court of Justice of the European Communities on 15 July
2002 by the Commission of the European Communities,
represented by C. Tufvesson and H. van Lier, acting as Agents,           The Commission considers that a penalty payment of
with an address for service in Luxembourg.                               EUR 242 650 per day is appropriate, given the seriousness
                                                                         and duration of the infringement, as well as the need to apply
                                                                         an effective penalty. It calculated the amount of the penalty to
The Commission of the European Communities claims that                   be proposed to the Court by using the method of calculation
the Court should:                                                        defined in its information notice of 8 January 1997 (4). It
                                                                         attributed to the seriousness of the infringement the coefficient
                                                                         10/20 and to the duration of the infringement a coefficient of
a.    Declare that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and        2.3. In order to ensure the effectiveness of the penalty, it
      administrative provisions necessary to comply fully with           applied the factor 21.1 to the result obtained by multiplying
      Council Directive 92/49/EEC of 18 June 1992 on the                 the uniform flat-rate amount of EUR 500 by the coefficient of
      coordination of laws, regulations and administrative               seriousness and of duration.
      provisions relating to direct insurance other than life
      assurance and amending Directives 73/239/EEC and 88/
      357/EEC (third non-life insurance Directive) (1) and with
      Council Directive 92/96/EEC of 10 November 1992 on
      the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative           ( 1) OJ L 228 of 11.8.1992, p. 1.
      provisions relating to direct life assurance and amending          ( 2) OJ L 360 of 9.12.1992, p. 1.
                                                                         ( 3) [1999] ECR I-8935.
      Directives 79/267/EEC and 90/619/EEC (third life assur-            ( 4) OJ C 63 of 28.2.1997, p. 2.
      ance Directive) (2) and, in particular, by not transposing
      those directives with regard to mutual societies governed
      by the Code de la Mutualité, the French Republic has
      failed to implement all the measures necessary to comply
      with the judgment of 16 December 1999 in Case C-239/
      98 Commission v France (3) and has failed to fulfil its
      obligations under Article 228 EC;