CELEX: C1996/077/02
Language: en
Date: 1996-03-16 00:00:00
Title: JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fourth Chamber) of 14 December 1995 in Joined Cases C-106/94 and C-139/94 (references for a preliminary ruling from the Cour d'Appel, Bourges (France) and the Tribunal de Grande Instance, Paris): criminal proceedings against Patrick Colin and Daniel Dupré (Refund for use of sugar in the manufacture of certain chemical products - Throat pastilles - Tonic beverages - Tariff classification)

16 . 3 . 96           EN                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                    No C 77/ 1
                                                                   I
                                                             (Information)
                                               COURT OF JUSTICE
                                                         COURT OF JUSTICE
               JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                       court to apply Articles 3 (f), 85, 86 and 90 of the EC
                     of 14 December 1995                                   Treaty even when the party with an interest in
                                                                           application of those provisions has not relied on them,
in Joined Cases C-430/93 and C-431 /93 ( references for a                  where domestic law allows such application by the
preliminary ruling from the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden ):                   national court.
Jeroen van Schijndel and Johannes Nicolaas Cornelis van
Veen v. Stichting Pensioenfonds voor Fysiotherapeuten ( 1 )
                                                                       2 . Community law does not require national courts to raise
(Treatment of an occupational pension fund as an                           of their own motion an issue concerning the breach of
undertaking — Compulsory membership of an                                  provisions of Community law where examination of
occupational pension scheme — Compatibility with the                       that issue would oblige them to abandon the passive role
rules ofcompetition — Whether a point of Community law                     assigned to them by going beyond the ambit of the
may be raised for the first time in cassation, thereby altering            dispute defined by the parties themselves and relying on
the subject-matter of the proceedings and entailing an                     facts and circumstances other than those on which the
                     examination of facts)                                 party with an interest in application of those provisions
                          ( 96/C 77/01 )                                   bases his claim .
                (Language of the case: Dutch)                          (') OJ No C 338 , 15 . 12 . 1993 .
(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
          published in the European Court Reports)
In joined Cases C-430/93 and C-431 /93 : references to the
Court under Article 177 of the EC Treaty from the Hoge
                                                                                     JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
Raad der Nederlanden ( Supreme Court of the Netherlands )
for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before                                    ( Fourth Chamber )
that court between Jeroen van Schijndel and Johannes                                      of 14 December 1995
Nicolaas Cornelis van Veen and Stichting Pensioenfonds
voor Fysiotherapeuten — on ( i ) the interpretation of                 in Joined Cases C-106/94 and C-139/94 ( references for a
Community law with regard to the power of a national                   preliminary ruling from the Cour d'Appel, Bourges ( France)
court to consider of its own motion the compatibility of a             and the Tribunal de Grande Instance, Paris ): criminal
rule of domestic law with Articles 3 ( f), 5 , 85 , 86 and/or 90       proceedings against Patrick Colin and Daniel Dupré ( } )
of the EC Treaty and ( ii ) the interpretation of those                (Refund for use of sugar in the manufacture of certain
provisions — the Court, composed of G. C. Rodriguez                    chemicalproducts — Throatpastilles — Tonic beverages —
Iglesias , President, C. N. Kakouris , D. A. O. Edward, J. -P.                               Tariff classification)
Puissochet and G. Hirsch ( Presidents of Chambers ), G. F.                                        ( 96/C 77/02 )
Mancini, F. A. Schockweiler, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida
( Rapporteur ), P. J. G. Kapteyn, C. Gulmann, J. L. Murray,                           (Language of the case: French)
P. Jann and H. Ragnemalm, Judges; F. G. Jacobs, Advocate
General; R. Grass, Registrar, and H. A. Rühl, Principal
Administrator, has given a judgment on 14 December 1995 ,              (Provisional translation; the definitive verison will be
in which it rules :                                                             published in the European Court Reports)
 1 . In proceedings concerning civil rights and obligations            In joined Cases C-106/94 and C-139/94 : references to the
     freely entered into by the parties, it is for the national        Court under Article 177 of the EC Treaty from the Cour
 ---pagebreak--- No C 77/2             EN                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                         16 . 3 . 96
d'Appel, Bourges ( France ) and the Tribunal de Grande                    purposes, it cannot be regarded as a pharmaceutical
Instance ( Regional Court), Paris for a preliminary ruling in             product falling under that heading.
the criminal proceedings pending before those courts
against Patrick Colin attended by Distrithera SARL
( C-106/94 ) and Daniel Dupre attended by Laboratoires              (') OJ No C 132 , 14 . 5 . 1994 ; OJ No C 188 , 9 . 7 . 1994 .
Valda SA ( C-139/94 ) on the interpretation, in Case                ( 2 ) OJ No L 78 , 21 . 3 . 1985 , p . 13 .
C-106/94, of the Common Customs Tariff as regards the
classification of tonic beverages and throat pastilles and, in
Case C-139/94 , of Commission Regulation ( EEC ) No
717/85 of 19 March 1985 on the classification of goods
within subheading 17.04 D I of the Common Customs
Tariff (2 ) and Chapter 30 of the Common Customs Tariff
and the Combined Nomenclature as regards the
classification of throat pastilles, the Court ( Fourth
Chamber), composed of C. N. Kakouris, President of                                 JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
the Chamber, P. J. G. Kapteyn and J. L. Murray                                                 ( Fifth Chamber)
( Rapporteur), Judges; M. B. Elmer, Advocate General :
D. Loutermann-Hubeau, Principal Administrator, for the                                    of 14 December 1995
Registrar, has given a judgment on 14 December 1995 , in            in Case C-162/94: Commission of the European
which it ruled :                                                                       Communities v. Ireland ( 1 )
                                                                    (Failure to fulfil obligations — Directive 89/662/EEC —
                                                                               Veterinary checks — Failure to transpose)
1 . Having regard to their composition, presentation and                                          ( 96/C 77/03 )
    purpose, pastilles such as red Pulmoll pastilles fall under
    heading 17.04 of the Common Customs Tariff.
                                                                                    (Language of the case: English)
2 . Having regard to their composition, presentation and            In Case C-162/94 : Commission of the European
    purpose, pastilles such as green Pulmoll pastilles fall         Communities ( Agents : Jose Luis Iglesias Buhigues and James
    under heading 17.04 of the Common Customs                       Macdonald Flett) v. Ireland (Agent: Michael A. Buckley) —
    Tariff.                                                         application for a declaration that, by failing to bring into
                                                                    force the laws , regulations and administrative provisions
                                                                    necessary to comply with Council Directive 89/662/EEC of
                                                                    11 December 1989 - concerning veterinary checks in
3 . Having regard to their composition, presentation and            intra-Community trade with a view to the completion of the
    purpose, beverages such as Sangart mixture fall under           internal market ( OJ No L 395 , 1989, p. 13 ), Ireland has
    heading 22.09 of the Common Customs Tariff.                     failed to fulfil its obligations under that Directive, in
                                                                    particular Article 22 thereof, and under the Treaty
                                                                    establishing the European Community — the Court ( Fifth
                                                                    Chamber), composed of D. A. O. Edward ( Rapporteur ),
4 . Having regard to their composition, presentation and            President of the Chamber, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida,
    purpose, beverages such as Quintonine fall under                C. Gulmann, L. Sevon and M Wathelet, Judges : C. O. Lenz,
    heading 22.09 of the Common Customs Tariff.                     Advocate General; R. Grass , Registrar, has given a
                                                                    judgment on 14 December 1995 , in which it:
5 . Regulation (EEC) No 71 7/85 of 1 9 March 1 985 on the           1 . Declares that, by failing to bring into force all the laws,
    classification of goods within subheading 17.04 D I of                regulations and administrative provisions necessary to
    the Common Customs Tariff may not be interpreted as                   comply with Council Directive 89/662/EEC of
    referring to goods whose composition (percentage by                   11 December 1989 concerning veterinary checks in
    weight) is different from that indicated in Article I of              intra-Community trade with a view to the completion of
    that Regulation.                                                      the internal market, Ireland has failed to fulfil its
                                                                          obligations under Article 22 of that Directive.
6 . Heading 30.03 of the CCT, which covers medicaments,
                                                                    2 . Orders Ireland to pay the costs.
    is to be interpreted as including a product consisting of
    sugar, but above all of active flavouring agents with
    medicinal properties in such a proportion that it is used       0 ) OJ No C 202 , 23 . 7. 1994 .
    only for therapeutic and prophylactic purposes.
    Nevertheless, where the proportion offlavouring agents
    in the composition of each product does not enable the
    product to be used only for therapeutic or prophylactic