CELEX: C2000/192/18
Language: en
Date: 2000-07-08 00:00:00
Title: Case C-166/00: Action brought on 8 May 2000 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Hellenic Republic

8.7.2000               EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                       C 192/11
Action brought on 8 May 2000 by the Commission of the                    Under the first paragraph of Article 10 of the Treaty, the
  European Communities against the Hellenic Republic                     Member States are to take all appropriate measures, whether
                                                                         general or particular, to ensure fulfilment of the obligations
                                                                         arising out of the Treaty or resulting from action taken by the
                         (Case C-166/00)                                 institutions of the Community.
                         (2000/C 192/18)                                 It is clear that the Hellenic Republic is required to take
                                                                         measures to comply with the above directives.
An action against the Hellenic Republic was brought before
the Court of Justice on 8 May 2000 by the Commission of                  The Commission notes that the Hellenic Republic has not yet
the European Communities, represented by Maria Kondou-                   taken the appropriate measures to transpose the directives in
Durande, of its Legal Service, with an address for service in            question fully into the Greek legal system.
Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gómez de la Cruz, also of
the Commission’s Legal Service, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.
                                                                         ( 1) OJ L 184 of 25.6.1997, p. 33.
                                                                         ( 2) OJ L 19 of 16.1.1998, p. 25.
The Commission of the European Communities asks the Court                ( 3) OJ L 208 of 24.7.1998, p. 43.
                                                                         ( 4) OJ L 261 of 24.9.1999, p. 10.
a) to declare that, by failing to adopt within the period
    prescribed the laws, regulations and administrative pro-
    visions necessary to comply with
    — Council Directive 97/41/EC of 25 June 1997 (1)
         amending Directives 76/895/EEC, 86/362/EEC,
         86/363/EEC and 90/642/EEC relating to the fixing of
         maximum levels for pesticide residues in and on,
         respectively, fruit and vegetables, cereals, foodstuffs of      Reference for a preliminary ruling, by order of the
         animal origin, and certain products of plant origin,            Oberster Gerichtshof (Austria) of 13 April 2000 in the
         including fruit and vegetables;                                 case of Verein für Konsumenteninformation v Karl Heinz
                                                                                                        Henkel
    — Council Directive 97/76/EC of 16 December 1997 (2)
         amending Directive 77/99/EEC and Directive                                               (Case C-167/00)
         72/462/EEC with regard to the rules applicable to
         minced meat, meat preparations and certain other
         products of animal origin;                                                               (2000/C 192/19)
    — Commission Directive 98/51/EC of 9 July 1998 (3)                   Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
         laying down certain measures for implementing                   European Communities by order of the Oberster Gerichtshof
         Council Directive 95/69/EC laying down the con-                 (Supreme Court) (Austria) of 13 April 2000, which was
         ditions and arrangements for approving and registering          received at the Court Registry on 8 May 2000, for a preliminary
         certain establishments and intermediaries operating in          ruling in the case of Verein für Konsumenteninformation v
         the animal feed sector;                                         Karl Heinz Henkel on the following question:
    — Commission Directive 98/67/EC of 7 September                       Does the right to obtain an injunction to prohibit the use of
         1998 (4)      amending      Directives       80/511/EEC,        unlawful or unconscionable general terms and conditions
         82/475/EEC, 91/357/EEC and Council Directive                    provided for in Paragraph 28 of the Austrian Konsumenten-
         96/25/EC and repealing Directive 92/87/EEC                      schutzgesetz (Law on Customer Protection, ‘KSchG’), BGBl
                                                                         1979/140, which is asserted by a consumer protection organis-
    within the periods prescribed in those directives, the               ation pursuant to Paragraph 29 of the KSchG and in accord-
    Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under         ance with Article 7(2) of Council Directive of 5 April 1993 on
    the Treaty and those directives.                                     unfair terms in consumer contracts (93/13/EEC (1)), constitute
                                                                         a claim arising out of matters relating to tort, delict or quasi-
b) order the Hellenic Republic to pay the costs.                         delict which may be asserted in courts with the special
                                                                         jurisdiction provided for in Article 5(3) of the Brussels Conven-
                                                                         tion on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Judgments in Civil
                                                                         and Commercial Matters of 27 September 1968?
Pleas in law and main arguments
Under the third paragraph of Article 249 of the Treaty                   (1) OJ L 95 of 21.4.1993, p. 29.
establishing the European Community, a directive is to be
binding, as to the result to be achieved, upon each Member
State to which it is addressed.