CELEX: C2003/146/40
Language: en
Date: 2003-06-21 00:00:00
Title: Case C-139/03: Action brought on 27 March 2003 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Federal Republic of Germany

C 146/24               EN                      Official Journal of the European Union                                           21.6.2003
Action brought on 26 March 2003 by the Commission of                   Pleas in law and main arguments
the European Communities against the Kingdom of Spain
                                                                       Article 2 of Regulation No (EEC) 2092/91 prohibits the use of
                         (Case C-135/03)                               derivatives of the term designating organic agricultural
                                                                       methods in any of the official languages of the European
                                                                       Community for products which have not been obtained by
                         (2003/C 146/39)                               means of organic production methods. Accordingly, use of the
                                                                       term ‘bio’, cited expressly in Article 2 as an example of a
                                                                       derived term indicating organic agriculture, is prohibited.
An action against the Kingdom of Spain was brought before              National legislation which allows the use of the term ‘bio’ in
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 26 March           the labelling, advertising material or commercial documents
2003 by the Commission of the European Communities,                    for a product which has not been manufactured in accordance
represented by Gérard Berscheid, Legal Adviser, and Sara Pardo         with Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91, such as Real Decreto
Quintillán, of its Legal Service, with an address for service in       (Royal Decree) 1852/1993 following the amendments inserted
Luxembourg.                                                            by Real Decreto 506/2001, infringes Regulation (EEC)
                                                                       No 2092/91.
The applicant claims that the Court should:
                                                                       Such national legislation also infringes Article 2(1)(a)(i) of
                                                                       Directive 2000/13/EC, according to which the labelling and
—    Declare that:                                                     methods used must not be such as could mislead the purchaser,
                                                                       particularly as to the characteristics of the foodstuff and, in
     —    by maintaining in its domestic legal system and in           particular, as to its nature, identity, properties, composition,
          current usage the term ‘bio’, on its own or in               quantity, durability, origin or provenance, method of manufac-
          combination with other terms, for products which             ture or production.
          have not been obtained in accordance with organic
          production methods, thereby infringing Article 2 in
          conjunction with Article 5 of Council Regulation             (1 ) OJ 1991 L 198, p. 1.
          (EEC) No 2092/91 ( 1) of 24 June 1991 on organic             (2 ) Council Regulation (EC) No 1935/95 of 22 June 1995 amending
                                                                            Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 on organic production of agricul-
          production of agricultural products and indications               tural products and indications referring thereto on agricultural
          referring thereto on agricultural products and food-              products and foodstuffs OJ 1995 L 186, p. 1.
          stuffs, as amended by Regulations (EC) No 1935/              (3 ) Council Regulation (EC) No 1804/1999 of 19 July 1999 sup-
          95 (2) and (EC) No 1804/1999 (3);by failing to adopt              plementing Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 on organic production
          the necessary measures to prevent misleading use of               of agricultural products and indications referring thereto on
          that word, thereby infringing Article 2 in conjunc-               agricultural products and foodstuffs to include livestock pro-
          tion with Article 10a of the abovementioned                       duction OJ 1999 L 222, p. 1.
          amended regulation; and by failing to adopt                  (4 ) OJ 2000 L 109, p. 29.
          measures to prevent purchasers from being misled
          as to the method of manufacture or production
          of foodstuffs, thereby infringing Article 2 of the
          abovementioned amended regulation in conjunction
          with Article 2(1)(a)(i) of Directive 2000/13/EC of
          the European Parliament and of the Council of
          20 March 2000 on the approximation of the laws
          of the Member States relating to the labelling,              Action brought on 27 March 2003 by the Commission of
          presentation and advertising of foodstuffs ( 4); and         the European Communities against the Federal Republic
                                                                                                   of Germany
     —    by maintaining in the Comunidad Foral de Navarra,
          contrary to the same provisions, use of the term                                       (Case C-139/03)
          ‘bio’, on its own or in combination with other terms,
          for dairy products in respect of which that term has
          been customarily and continuously used when they                                       (2003/C 146/40)
          have not been obtained in accordance with organic
          production methods,
                                                                       An action against the Federal Republic of Germany was
     the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations
                                                                       brought before the Court of Justice of the European Communi-
     under the abovementioned regulation and directive, in
                                                                       ties on 27 March 2003 by the Commission of the European
     particular the provisions thereof as indicated above;
                                                                       Communities, represented by Josef Christian Schieferer and
                                                                       Hans Støvlbæk, of its Legal Service, with an address for service
—    order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.                      in Luxembourg.
 ---pagebreak--- 21.6.2003              EN                      Official Journal of the European Union                                        C 146/25
The applicant claims that the Court should:                            Pleas in law and principal arguments
1.    declare that, by failing to adopt the necessary laws,
      regulations and administrative provisions to implement           The period prescribed for implementing the directive ended
      Commission Directive 2000/38/EC (1) of 5 June 2000               on 31 July 2001.
      amending Chapter Va (Pharmacovigilance) of Council
      Directive 75/319/EEC on the approximation of pro-
      visions laid down by law, regulation or administrative           (1 ) OJ L 193, 29.7.2000, p. 75.
      action relating to medicinal products and/or to notify the       (2 ) OJ L 195, 29.7.1980, p. 35.
      Commission of those provisions, the Federal Republic of
      Germany has failed to fulfil its obligations under the
      directive;
2.    order the Federal Republic of Germany to pay the costs.
                                                                       Action brought on 31 March 2003 by the Commission of
Pleas in law and main arguments                                        the European Communities against the Kingdom of Spain
The time-limit for implementing the directive expired on                                        (Case C-142/03)
5 December 2001.
                                                                                                (2003/C 146/42)
( 1) OJ L 139 of 10.6.2000, p. 28.
                                                                       An action against the Kingdom of Spain was brought before
                                                                       the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 31 March
                                                                       2003 by the Commission of the European Communities,
                                                                       represented by Fernando Castillo de la Torre and Niels Bertil
                                                                       Rasmusen, members of its Legal Service, with an address for
Action brought on 28 March 2003 by the Commission                      service in Luxembourg.
of the European Communities against the Kingdom of
                              Sweden
                                                                       The applicant claims that the Court should:
                         (Case C-141/03)
                                                                       —     declare that the Kingdom of Spain has infringed Article 91
                                                                             of Council Regulation (EC) No 40/94 of 20 December
                         (2003/C 146/41)                                     1993 on the Community trade mark (1) by having
                                                                             failed to communicate to the Commission the list of
                                                                             Community trade mark courts;
An action against the Kingdom of Sweden was brought before             —     order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 28 March
2003 by the Commission of the European Communities,
represented by P. Hellström and J.M. Flett, acting as Agents,
with an address for service in Luxembourg.
                                                                       Pleas in law and main arguments
The Commission claims that the Court should:
                                                                       The Member States are under an obligation to designate,
                                                                       within three years following entry into force of the regulation,
—     Declare that by failing to adopt the laws and other              ‘Community trade mark courts’ and to communicate to the
      provisions necessary to implement Commission Directive           Commission their names and their territorial jurisdiction. That
      2000/52/EC ( 1) of 26 July 2000 amending Directive 80/           information should have been communicated by 15 March
      723/EEC (2) on the transparency of financial relations           1997 at the latest.
      between Member States and public undertakings or, in
      any event, by failing to inform the Commission thereof,
      the Kingdom of Sweden has failed to fulfil its obligations
                                                                       (1 ) OJ L 11 of 14.1.1994, p. 1.
      under the directive, and
—     Order the Kingdom of Sweden to pay the costs.