CELEX: C1997/142/13
Language: en
Date: 1997-05-10 00:00:00
Title: JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fifth Chamber) of 20 March 1997 in Case C-13/96 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Belgian Conseil d'État): Bic Benelux SA v. Belgian State (Obligation to give prior notification under Directive 83/189/EEC - Technical regulations and specifications - Marking of products subject to environmental tax)

No C 142/6              EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                     10 . 5 . 97
               JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                      ( Commercial Court), Pontoise, France, for a preliminary
                          ( Sixth Chamber )                               ruling in the proceedings pending before that court
                                                                          between Phytheron International SA and Jean Bourdon SA
                        of 20 March 1997
                                                                          — on the interpretation of Articles 30 and 36 of the EC
in Case C-323/95 (reference for a preliminary ruling from                 Treaty — the Court ( Fifth Chamber), composed of: J. C.
the Saarlandisches Oberlandesgericht): David Charles                      Moitinho de Almeida, President of the Chamber, C.
Hayes and Jeanette Karen Hayes v. Kronenberger GmbH,                      Gulmann ( Rapporteur ), D. A. O. Edward, J. -P. Puissochet
                          in liquidation ( ! )                            and M. Wathelet, Judges; F. G. Jacobs, Advocate-General;
                                                                          H. von Holstein, Deputy Registrar, for the Registrar, has
(Equal treatment — Discrimination on grounds of                           given a judgment on 20 March 1997, in which it has
                nationality — Security for costs)                         ruled :
                            ( 97/C 142/11 )
                                                                          Article 7 of the First Council Directive (89/104/EEC) of
                (Language of the case: German)                            21 December 1988 to approximate the laws of the
   (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
                                                                          Member States relating to trade marks is to be interpreted
                                                                          as precluding application of a national rule in Member
          published in the European Court Reports)
                                                                          State A under which the owner of a trade mark may
In Case C-323/95 : reference to the Court under Article 177               prevent importation of a product protected by the mark
of the EC Treaty from the Saarlandisches Oberlandesge­                    where
richt ( Saarland Higher Regional Court) ( Germany), for a
preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that                 — the product has been manufactured in a non-member
court between David Charles Hayes and Jeanette Karen                           country,
Hayes, on the one hand, and Kronenberger GmbH, in
liquidation, on the other — on the interpretation of the                  — it has been imported into Member State B by the
first paragraph of Article 6 of the EC Treaty — the Court                      owner of the mark or by another company in the same
( Sixth Chamber ), composed of: G. F. Mancini, President                       group as the owner of the mark,
of the Chamber, J. L. Murray, P. J. G. Kapteyn
( Rapporteur ), G. Hirsch and H. Ragnemalm, Judges; A.                    — it has been lawfully acquired in Member State B by an
La Pergola, Advocate-General; R. Grass, Registrar, has                         independent trader, who has exported it to Member
given a judgment on 20 March 1997, in which it has                             State A,
ruled :
                                                                          — it has not been processed and the packaging has not
Article 6 of the EC Treaty must be interpreted as
                                                                               been changed, apart from the addition to the label of
precluding a Member State from requiring security for                          certain information to comply with the requirements
costs to be furnished by a national of another Member                          of the legislation of the Member State of import, and
State who has brought an action in one of its civil courts
against one of its nationals where that requirement may
                                                                          — the trade mark rights are held in Member States A and
not be imposed on its own nationals who have neither
                                                                               B by the same group.
assets nor a residence in that country, in a situation where
 the action is connected with the exercise of fundamental
                                                                           O OJ No C 351 , 30 . 12 . 1995 .
freedoms guaranteed by Community law.
 (') OJ No C 333 , 9 . 12 . 1995 .
                                                                                         JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                                             (Fifth Chamber)
                           (Fifth Chamber)                                                       of 20 March 1997
                         of 20 March 1997
                                                                          in Case C-13/96 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
in Case C-352/95 (reference for a preliminary ruling from                 the Belgian Conseil d'Etat): Bic Benelux SA v. Belgian
 the Tribunal de Commerce, Pontoise ): Phytheron                                                        State (')
            International SA v. Jean Bourdon SA ( l )                      (Obligation to give prior notification under Directive 83/
 (Articles 30 and 36 of the EC Treaty — Trade Mark                         189/EEC — Technical regulations and specifications —
 Directive — Plant health product — Parallel import —                          Marking of products subject to environmental tax)
                               Exhaustion)
                                                                                                    ( 97/C 142/ 13 )
                             ( 97/C 142/12 )
                                                                                          (Language of the case: French)
                 (Language of the case: French)
   (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be             (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
           published in the European Court Reports)                                 published in the European Court Reports)
 In Case C-352/95 : reference to the Court under Article 177               In Case C-13/96 : reference to the Court under Article 177
 of the EC Treaty from the Tribunal de Commerce                            of the EC Treaty from the Belgian Conseil d'Etat ( Council
 ---pagebreak--- 10 . 5 . 97             EN                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                  No C 142/7
of State ) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings                composed of: J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, President of the
pending before that court between Bic Benelux SA and                  Chamber (Judge-Rapporteur), L. Sevón, D. A. O. Edward,
Belgian State — on the interpretation of Article 1 ( 1 ) and          J. -P. Puissochet and P. Jann, Judges; C. O. Lenz, Advocate­
( 5 ) of Council Directive 83/189/EEC of 28 March 1983                General; R. Grass, Registrar, has given a judgment on
laying down a procedure for the provision of information              20 March 1997, in which it:
in the field of technical standards and regulations ( OJ No
L 109, 26 . 4 . 1983 , p. 8 ), as amended by Council
Directive 88/182/EEC of 22 March 1988 ( OJ No L 81 ,                  1 . declares that, by failing to adopt, within the prescribed
26 . 3 . 1988 , p. 75 ) — the Court ( Fifth Chamber ),                      time-limit, the laws, regulations and administrative
composed of: J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, President of the                    provisions necessary to comply with Council Directive
Chamber, L. Sevón, C. Gulmann ( Rapporteur), D. A. O.                       93/42/EEC of 14 June 1993 concerning medical
Edward and P. Jann, Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer,                         devices, the Kingdom of Belgium has failed to fulfil its
Advocate-General; D. Louterman-Hubeau, Principal                            obligations under Article 22 thereof;
Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment on
20 March 1997, in which it has ruled:                                 2 . orders the Kingdom of Belgium to pay the costs.
An obligation to affix specific distinctive signs to products         (') OJ No C 318 , 26 . 10 . 1996 .
which are subject to a tax levied on them on account of
the environmental damage which they are deemed to
cause, such as that laid down in Articles 1 1 and 18 of the
Ministerial Order of 24 December 1993 concerning the
treatment of products subject to environmental tax,
constitutes a technical specification within the meaning of
Council Directive 83/189/EEC of 28 March 1983 laying                                     ORDER OF THE COURT
down a procedure for the provision of information in the                                       (First Chamber)
field of technical standards and regulations, as amended
                                                                                              of 6 March 1997
by Council Directive 88/182/EEC of 22 March 1988, and
the national enactment introducing it is a technical                  in Case C- 15 0/96 P: Roberto Galtieri v. European
regulation within the meaning of the same Directive.                                             Parliament (M
(>) OJ No C 64, 2 . 3 . 1996 .
                                                                                       (Appeal manifestly unfounded)
                                                                                                 ( 97/C 142/ 15 )
                                                                                       (Language of the case: French)
               JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                    (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
                         ( Fifth Chamber)                                        published in the European Court Reports)
                        of 20 March 1997
                                                                      In Case C-150/96 P: Roberto Galtieri, temporary agent of
in Case       C-294/96: Commission of the European                    the European Parliament, residing in Brussels, represented
            Communities v. Kingdom of Belgium (')                     by Pietro Cuomo, of the Naples Bar, with an address for
(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —                service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Stef
Failure to transpose Directive 93/42/EEC — Medical                    Oostvogels, PO Box 221 , 13 Rue Aldringen, — appeal
                               devices)                               against the judgment of the Court of First Instance ( First
                                                                      Chamber ) of 27 February 1996 in Case T-235/94 Galtieri
                           ( 97/C 142/14 )                            v. Parliament [ 1996] ECR-SC 11-129 , seeking to have that
                                                                      judgment set aside, the other party to the proceedings
                (Language of the case: French)                        being European Parliament ( Agent: Manfred Peter) — the
                                                                      Court ( First Chamber), composed of L. Sevón, President
                                                                      of the Chamber ( Rapporteur), D. A. O. Edward and P.
  (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be        Jann, Judges, G. Cosmas, Advocate-General; R. Grass,
          published in the European Court Reports)                    Registrar, has given a judgment on 6 March 1997, in
                                                                      which it:
In Case C-294/96 : Commission of the European
Communities ( Agents: Hendrik van Lier and Jean-Francois
Pasquier) v. Kingdom of Belgium (Agent: Jan Devadder)                 1 . dismisses the appeal;
— application for a declaration that, by failing to adopt,
within the prescribed time-limit, the laws, regulations and           2 . orders the appellant to bear the costs.
administrative provisions necessary to comply with
Council Directive 93/42/EEC of 14 June 1993 concerning
                                                                      (') OJ No C 197, 6 . 7. 1996 .
medical devices ( OJ No L 169, 12 . 7. 1993 , p. 1 ), the
Kingdom of Belgium has failed to fulfil its obligations
under the EC Treaty — the Court ( Fifth Chamber),