CELEX: C2000/316/24
Language: en
Date: 2000-11-04 00:00:00
Title: Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 21 September 2000 in Case C-109/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Tribunal Administratif de Pau): Association Basco-Béarnaise des Opticiens Indépendants v Préfet des Pyrénées-Atlantiques (Directives 73/239/EEC and 92/49/EEC — Objects of insurance undertakings limited to the business of insurance and operations arising directly therefrom, to the exclusion of all other commercial business)

4.11.2000               EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                             C 316/13
                 JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                                      JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                         (Sixth Chamber)                                                             (Sixth Chamber)
                      of 21 September 2000                                                        of 21 September 2000
                                                                          in Case C-109/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
in Case C-46/98 P: European Fertilizer Manufacturers
                                                                          the Tribunal Administratif de Pau): Association Basco-
Association (EFMA) v Council of the European Union and
                                                                          Béarnaise des Opticiens Indépendants v Préfet des Pyréné-
        Commission of the European Communities (1)
                                                                                                     es-Atlantiques (1)
(Appeal — Anti-dumping — Ineffective pleas — Right to a                   (Directives 73/239/EEC and 92/49/EEC — Objects of
                            fair hearing)                                 insurance undertakings limited to the business of insurance
                                                                          and operations arising directly therefrom, to the exclusion of
                                                                                             all other commercial business)
                         (2000/C 316/23)
                                                                                                      (2000/C 316/24)
                    (Language of the case: English)
                                                                                                (Language of the case: French)
In Case C-46/98 P: European Fertilizer Manufacturers Associ-
ation (EFMA), established in Zürich, Switzerland, represented
by D. Voillemot and O. Prost, of the Paris Bar, with an address
for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of M. Loesch, 11                (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
Rue Goethe — appeal against the judgment of the Court of                                       in the European Court Reports)
First Instance of the European Communities (Fourth Chamber,
Extended Composition) of 17 December 1997 in Case
T-121/95 EFMA v Council [1997] ECR II-2391, seeking to                    In Case C-109/99: reference to the Court under Article 177 of
have that judgment set aside, the other parties to the proceed-           the EC Treaty (now Article 234 EC) from the Tribunal
ings being: Council of the European Union (Agent: S. Mar-                 Administratif de Pau, France, for a preliminary ruling in the
quardt, assisted by H.-J. Rabe and G.M. Berrisch) and Com-                proceedings pending before that court between Association
mission of the European Communities (Agent: N. Khan) — the                Basco-Béarnaise des Opticiens Indépendants and Préfet des
Court (Sixth Chamber), composed of: R. Schintgen, President               Pyrénées-Atlantiques, supported by Mutuelle ‘Adour Mutualité’
of the Second Chamber, acting for the President of the Sixth              and Mutualité Française — Union des Pyrénées-Atlantiques —
Chamber, P.J.G. Kapteyn and H. Ragnemalm (Rapporteur),                    on the interpretation of Article 8(1)(b) of First Council Direc-
Judges; A. La Pergola, Advocate General; L. Hewlett, Adminis-             tive 73/239/EEC of 24 July 1973 on the coordination of laws,
trator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 21 September           regulations and administrative provisions relating to the
2000, in which it:                                                        taking-up and pursuit of the business of direct insurance other
                                                                          than life assurance (OJ 1973 L 228, p. 3), as amended by
                                                                          Council Directive 92/49/EEC of 18 June 1992 on the coordi-
1.    Dismisses the appeal;                                               nation of laws, regulations and administrative provisions
                                                                          relating to direct insurance other than life assurance and
                                                                          amending Directives 73/239/EEC and 88/357/EEC (third non-
2.    Orders European Fertilizer Manufacturers Association (EFMA)         life insurance Directive) (OJ 1992 L 228, p. 1) — the Court
      to pay the costs;                                                   (Sixth Chamber), composed of: J.C. Moitinho de Almeida
                                                                          (Rapporteur), President of the Chamber, C. Gulmann and
                                                                          J.-P. Puissochet, Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate
3.    Orders the Commission of the European Communities to bear           General; L. Hewlett, Administrator, for the Registrar, has given
      its own costs.                                                      a judgment on 21 September 2000, in which it has ruled:
                                                                          1.     Article 8(1)(b) of First Council Directive 73/239/EEC of
                                                                                 24 July 1973 on the coordination of laws, regulations and
(1) OJ C 137 of 2.5.1998.                                                        administrative provisions relating to the taking-up and pursuit
                                                                                 of the business of direct insurance other than life assurance, as
                                                                                 amended by Council Directive 92/49/EEC of 18 June 1992
                                                                                 on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative
                                                                                 provisions relating to direct insurance other than life assurance
                                                                                 and amending Directives 73/239/EEC and 88/357/EEC
 ---pagebreak--- C 316/14                 EN                       Official Journal of the European Communities                                          4.11.2000
      (third non-life insurance Directive), does not preclude mutual         amended by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1248/92 of 30 April
      benefit societies engaged solely in insurance business from            1992 (OJ 1992 L 136, p. 7) — the Court, composed of:
      creating between themselves a body with legal personality and          G.C. Rodrı́guez Iglesias, President, D.A.O. Edward (Rappor-
      legal autonomy — such as an association of mutual benefit              teur), L. Sevón and R. Schintgen (Presidents of Chambers),
      societies — which engages in commercial business, provided             P.J.G. Kapteyn, C. Gulmann, J.-P. Puissochet, P. Jann and
      that the capital subscribed to that body by those societies does       H. Ragnemalm, Judges; P. Léger, Advocate General; D. Louter-
      not exceed the value of their free assets and provided that, in        man-Hubeau, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has
      each case, the society’s liability is limited to the value of its      given a judgment on 26 September 2000, in which it has
      capital contribution.                                                  ruled:
2.    Article 8(1)(b) of Directive 73/239, as amended by Directive
      92/49, is sufficiently precise and unconditional to be relied          Where the competent authorities of a Member State apply a provision
      upon before the national courts as against the administrative          of law
      authorities and entails the inapplicability of any rule of national
      law incompatible with it.                                              —      which fixes the amount of the retirement pension awarded to a
                                                                                    married worker,
(1) OJ C 188 of 3.7.1999.
                                                                             —      which provides for that pension to be reduced, by the amount of
                                                                                    a pension awarded to his spouse under the scheme of another
                                                                                    Member State, but
                                                                             —      which provides for the application of a derogating clause in
                                                                                    respect of overlapping where the pension paid elsewhere is less
                                                                                    than a certain amount,
                  JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                                                                             it is contrary to Article 48 of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment,
                                                                             Article 39 EC) for those authorities to reduce the amount of the
                       of 26 September 2000                                  pension awarded to a migrant worker by the amount of a pension
                                                                             awarded to his spouse under the scheme of another Member State,
in Case C-262/97 (reference for a preliminary ruling from                    when the grant of that latter pension does not involve any increase in
the Arbeidshof, Antwerp (Belgium)): Rijksdienst voor                         the couple’s total income.
               Pensioenen v Robert Engelbrecht (1)
(Social security — Freedom of movement for workers —                         (1) OJ C 295 of 27.9.1997.
Retirement pension — Increase in respect of dependent
spouse — Articles 12 and 46a of Regulation (EEC)
No 1408/71 — Overlapping of pensions awarded under the
              legislation of different Member States)
                           (2000/C 316/25)
                     (Language of the case: Dutch)                           Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Court of Appeal
                                                                             (England & Wales), by order of that court of 20 July 2000,
                                                                             in the case of A. Lawrence and others against 1) Regent
(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published       Office Care Ltd, 2) Commercial Catering Group and
                    in the European Court Reports)                                               3) Mitie Secure Services Ltd
In Case C-262/97: reference to the Court under Article 177 of                                           (Case C-320/00)
the EC Treaty (now Article 234 EC) from the Arbeidshof,
Antwerp (Belgium) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings                                           (2000/C 316/26)
pending before that court between Rijksdienst voor Pensioenen
and Robert Engelbrecht — on the interpretation of Article 48
of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment, Article 39 EC) and                   Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
Articles 12(2) and 46a(3)(c) of Council Regulation (EEC)                     European Communities by an order of the Court of Appeal
No 1408/71 of 14 June 1971 on the application of social                      (England & Wales) of 20 July 2000, which was received at the
security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed                       Court Registry on 22 August 2000, for a preliminary ruling in
persons and to members of their families moving within the                   the case of A. Lawrence and others against 1) Regent Office
Community, as amended and updated by Council Regulation                      Care Ltd, 2) Commercial Catering Group and 3) Mitie Secure
(EEC) No 2001/83 of 2 June 1983 (OJ 1983 L 230, p. 6), as                    Services Ltd, on the following questions: