CELEX: C2001/331/19
Language: en
Date: 2001-11-24 00:00:00
Title: Case C-366/01: Action brought on 24 September 2001 by the Commission of the European Communities against Ireland

C 331/12              EN                      Official Journal of the European Communities                                       24.11.2001
Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Gerechtshof te                 Action brought on 24 September 2001 by the Com-
’s-Hertogenbosch by order of 5 September 2001 in the                        mission of the European Communities against Ireland
case of H. Barbier against the decision of the head of the
section ‘non-resident individuals/undertakings’, Heerlen,                                            (Case C-366/01)
                of the national revenue service
                                                                                                     (2001/C 331/19)
                         (Case C-364/01)
                                                                         An action against Ireland was brought before the Court of
                                                                         Justice of the European Communities on 24 September 2001
                                                                         by the Commission of the European Communities, represented
                        (2001/C 331/18)                                  by Marie Wolfcarius, acting as agent, with an address for
                                                                         service in Luxembourg.
                                                                         The Applicant claims that the Court should:
                                                                         (1) declare that by failing to adopt the laws, regulations
                                                                                or administrative provisions necessary to comply with
Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of European                     Commission Directive 1999/48/EC(1) of 21 May 1999
Communities by order of 5 September 2001 by the Gerechts-                       adapting for the second time to technical progress
hof (District Court) ’s-Hertogenbosch which was received at                     Council Directive 96/49/EC on the approximation of the
the Court Registry on 24 September 2001, for a preliminary                      laws of the Member States with regard to the transport of
ruling in the case of H. Barbier against the decision of the head               dangerous goods by rail, or in any event by failing to
of the section ‘non-resident individuals/undertakings’, Heerlen,                inform the Commission of those measures, Ireland has
of the national revenue service on the following questions:                     failed to fulfil its obligations under this Directive,
                                                                         (2) order Ireland to pay the costs.
1.   Is cross-border economic activity at present a precon-
     dition of the application of Community law?
                                                                         Pleas in law and main arguments
2.   When a Member State imposes, on inheritance of immov-               Article 249 EC, under which a directive shall be binding, as to
     able property situated in that Member State, a charge to            the result to be achieved, upon each Member State, carries by
     tax on the value of that property, does Community law               implication an obligation on the Member States to observe the
     preclude it from allowing deduction of the value of the             period for compliance laid down in the Directive. That period
     liability to transfer the legal title to that property where        expired on 1 July 1999 without Ireland having enacted the
     the testator at the time of death was resident in that              provisions necessary to comply with the Directive referred to
     Member State but not where at the time of death he was              in the conclusions of the Commission.
     resident in another Member State?
                                                                         (1) OJ L 169, 5.7.1999, p. 58.
3.   Does it make any difference to the reply to be given to
     Question 2, whether at the time of acquisition of the
     immovable property the testator no longer resided in the
     Member State in which the property is situated?
                                                                         Action brought on 24 September 2001 by the Com-
                                                                         mission of the European Communities against the Hellen-
4.   Is the distribution of the testator’s capital as between the                                       ic Republic
     State in which the property is situated, the State of
     residence and any other States relevant to Question 2?
                                                                                                     (Case C-367/01)
                                                                                                     (2001/C 331/20)
5.   If so, in which State is a capital investment which is
     constituted by a claim under current-accounting arrange-
     ments on a limited company such as that described in
     paragraph 2.4 invested?                                             An action against the Hellenic Republic was brought before
                                                                         the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 24 Sep-
                                                                         tember 2001 by the Commission of the European Communi-
                                                                         ties, represented by Antonio Caeiros, legal Adviser, and Panos
                                                                         Panagiotopoulos, a national civil servant on secondment to its
                                                                         Legal Service.