CELEX: C2002/180/04
Language: en
Date: 2002-07-27 00:00:00
Title: Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 6 June 2002 in Case C-80/00 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Bundesgerichtshof): Italian Leather SpA v WECO Polstermöbel GmbH & Co. (Brussels Convention — Article 27(3) — Irreconcilability — Enforcement procedures in the State where enforcement is sought)

C 180/2                    EN                        Official Journal of the European Communities                                             27.7.2002
for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that                 Abad): Application for a declaration that, by failing to adopt
court between Inspecteur van de Belastingdienst Douane,                         the measures necessary to transpose correctly the obligation
Rotterdam district and Sea-Land Service Inc. (C-430/99),                        arising from Articles 2(1) and 4(2) of Council Directive 85/
Nedlloyd Lijnen BV (C-431/99), on the interpretation of                         337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment of the effects of
Articles 92, 59 and 56 of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment,                  certain public and private projects on the environment
Articles 87 EC, 49 EC and 46 EC) and Council Regulation                         (OJ 1985 L 175, p. 40), in conjunction with Annex II thereto,
(EEC) No 4055/86 of 22 December 1986 applying the                               and by maintaining in force legislation which, in breach of
principle of freedom to provide services to maritime transport                  those provisions, does not enable an assessment of the
between Member States and between Member States and third                       environmental effects to be carried out in the whole of the
countries (OJ 1986 L 378, p. 1), the Court (Sixth Chamber),                     national territory in respect of certain classes of project listed
composed of: F. Macken, President of the Chamber, C. Gul-                       in Annex II to that directive and, in a considerable part of that
mann (Rapporteur), J.-P. Puissochet, R. Schintgen and                           territory, in respect of many other classes of project listed in
J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, Judges; S. Alber, Advocate General;                       the same annex, the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its
L. Hewlett, Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a                       obligations under that directive, the Court (Sixth Chamber),
judgment on 13 June 2002, in which it has ruled:                                composed of: F. Macken, President of the Chamber,
                                                                                J.-P. Puissochet (Rapporteur) and V. Skouris, Judges; L.A. Geel-
As regards situations falling within the scope of Council Regulation            hoed, Advocate General; L. Hewlett, Administrator, for the
(EEC) No 4055/86 of 22 December 1986 applying the principle of                  Registrar, has given a judgment on 13 June 2002, in which it:
freedom to provide services to maritime transport between Member
States and between Member States and third countries, that                      1.     Declares that, by failing to adopt within the prescribed period
regulation, in conjunction with Articles 56 and 59 of the EC Treaty                    all the laws, regulations and administrative measures necessary
(now, after amendment, Articles 46 EC and 49 EC), does not preclude                    to comply with Articles 2(1) and 4(2) of Council Directive 85/
a vessel traffic services system, such as the ‘verkeersbegeleidingssysteem’            337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment of the effects of
system at issue in the main proceedings, which requires the payment                    certain public and private projects on the environment, in
of a tariff by sea-going vessels longer than 41 metres which                           conjunction with Annex II thereto, the Kingdom of Spain has
participate in that system on a mandatory basis, while other vessels,                  failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive;
such as inland waterway vessels, are exempt from that tariff, in so far
as there is in fact a correlation between the amount of that tariff and         2.     Orders the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.
the cost of the service from which those sea-going vessels benefit.
                                                                                (1) OJ C 47 of 19.2.2000.
(1) OJ C 20 of 22.1.2000.
                                                                                                   JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                    JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                                                                                                              (Fifth Chamber)
                             (Sixth Chamber)
                             of 13 June 2002                                                                   of 6 June 2002
in Case C-474/99: Commission of the European Communi-                           in Case C-80/00 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from
                      ties v Kingdom of Spain (1)                               the Bundesgerichtshof): Italian Leather SpA v WECO
                                                                                                    Polstermöbel GmbH & Co. (1)
(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
Directive 85/337/EEC — Assessment of the effects of certain                     (Brussels Convention — Article 27(3) — Irreconcilability —
public and private projects on the environment — Incomplete                     Enforcement procedures in the State where enforcement is
                               transposition)                                                                      sought)
                             (2002/C 180/03)                                                                  (2002/C 180/04)
                      (Language of the case: Spanish)                                                 (Language of the case: German)
(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published          (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
                      in the European Court Reports)                                                  in the European Court Reports)
In Case C-474/99, Commission of the European Communities                        In Case C-80/00: Reference to the Court, under the Protocol
(Agent: G. Valero Jordana) v Kingdom of Spain (Agent: N. Dı́az                  of 3 June 1971 on the interpretation by the Court of Justice of
 ---pagebreak--- 27.7.2002               EN                      Official Journal of the European Communities                                             C 180/3
the Convention of 27 September 1968 on Jurisdiction and the                                  JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters,
by the Bundesgerichtshof (Germany) for a preliminary ruling
in the proceedings pending before that court between Italian                                         (Sixth Chamber)
Leather SpA and WECO Polstermöbel GmbH & Co., on the
interpretation of Title III, headed ‘Recognition and enforce-
ment’, of the abovementioned Convention of 27 September                                              of 13 June 2002
1968 (OJ 1978 L 304, p. 36), as amended by the Convention
of 9 October 1978 on the Accession of the Kingdom of
Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain                   in Case C-117/00: Commission of the European Communi-
and Northern Ireland (OJ 1978 L 304, p. 1 and — amended                                               ties v Ireland (1)
text — p. 77), by the Convention of 25 October 1982 on the
Accession of the Hellenic Republic (OJ 1982 L 388, p. 1) and
by the Convention of 26 May 1989 on the Accession of the                   (Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
Kingdom of Spain and the Portuguese Republic (OJ 1989                      Directives 79/409/EEC and 92/43/EEC — Conservation of
L 285, p. 1), the Court (Fifth Chamber), composed of: P. Jann,                          wild birds — Special protection areas)
President of the Chamber, D.A.O. Edward, A. La Pergola,
M. Wathelet (Rapporteur) and C.W.A. Timmermans, Judges;
P. Léger, Advocate General; H.A. Rühl, Principal Administrator,                                      (2002/C 180/05)
for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 6 June 2002, in
which it has ruled:
                                                                                               (Language of the case: English)
                                                                           In Case C-117/00, Commission of the European Communities
1.    On a proper construction of Article 27(3) of the Convention of       (Agent: R. Wainwright) v Ireland (Agent: D. J. O’Hagan, assisted
      27 September 1968 on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of             by C. Mac Eochaidh, BL): Application for a declaration that, by
      Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters, as amended by             failing to take all the measures necessary to comply with
      the Convention of 9 October 1978 on the Accession of the             Article 3 of Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on
      Kingdom of Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom of                the conservation of wild birds (OJ 1979 L 103, p. 1), in respect
      Great Britain and Northern Ireland, by the Convention of             of the Red Grouse, and with the first sentence of Article 4(4)
      25 October 1982 on the Accession of the Hellenic Republic            of that directive and Article 6(2) of Council Directive 92/43/
      and by the Convention of 26 May 1989 on the Accession of             EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats
      the Kingdom of Spain and the Portuguese Republic, a foreign          and of wild fauna and flora (OJ 1992 L 206, p. 7), in respect
      decision on interim measures ordering an obligor not to carry        of the Owenduff-Nephin Beg Complex special protection area,
      out certain acts is irreconcilable with a decision on interim        Ireland has failed to comply with those directives and has
      measures refusing to grant such an order in a dispute between        failed to fulfil its obligations under the EC Treaty, the Court
      the same parties in the State where recognition is sought.           (Sixth Chamber), composed of: F. Macken, President of the
                                                                           Chamber, C. Gulmann (Rapporteur) and V. Skouris, Judges;
                                                                           P. Léger, Advocate General; L. Hewlett, Administrator, for the
                                                                           Registrar, has given a judgment on 13 June 2002, in which it:
2.    Where a court of the State in which recognition is sought finds
      that a judgment of a court of another Contracting State is           1.    Declares that, by failing to take the measures necessary to
      irreconcilable with a judgment given by a court of the former              safeguard a sufficient diversity and area of habitats for the Red
      State in a dispute between the same parties, it is required to             Grouse and by failing to take appropriate steps to avoid, in the
      refuse to recognise the foreign judgment.                                  Owenduff-Nephin Beg Complex special protection area, the
                                                                                 deterioration of the habitats of the species for which the special
                                                                                 protection area was designated, Ireland has failed to fulfil its
                                                                                 obligations under Article 3 of Council Directive 79/409/EEC
                                                                                 of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds and
                                                                                 Article 6(2) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992
                                                                                 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and
(1) OJ C 147 of 27.5.2000.                                                       flora;
                                                                           2.    Orders Ireland to pay the costs.
                                                                           (1) OJ C 163 of 10.6.2000.