CELEX: E2021J0002
Language: en
Date: 2021-12-14 00:00:00
Title: Judgment of the Court of 14 December 2021 in Case E-2/21 Norep AS v Haugen Gruppen AS (Self-employed commercial agents – Directive 86/653/EEC – Article 1(2) – Definition of ‘commercial agent’ – Negotiation of the sale or purchase of goods on behalf of the principal) 2022/C 153/08

7.4.2022   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 153/14
            
         
      JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
      of 14 December 2021
      in Case E-2/21
      Norep AS v Haugen Gruppen AS
      
         
            (Self-employed commercial agents – Directive 86/653/EEC – Article 1(2) – Definition of ‘commercial agent’ – Negotiation of the sale or purchase of goods on behalf of the principal)
         
      
      (2022/C 153/08)
      In Case E-2/21, Norep As v Haugen Gruppen AS – REQUEST to the Court under Article 34 of the Agreement between the EFTA States on the Establishment of a Surveillance Authority and a Court of Justice by the Supreme Court of Norway (Norges Høyesterett) concerning the interpretation of Council Directive 86/653/EEC of 18 December 1986 on the coordination of the laws of the Member States relating to self-employed commercial agents, the Court, composed of Páll Hreinsson, President (Judge-Rapporteur), Per Christiansen and Bernd Hammermann, Judges, gave judgment on 14 December 2021, the operative part of which is as follows:
      
                  1.
               
               
                  Article 1(2) of Council Directive 86/653/EEC of 18 December 1986 on the coordination of the laws of the Member States relating to self-employed commercial agents, and in particular the term ‘negotiate’, should be interpreted as not necessarily presupposing the agent’s direct involvement with the placing of orders by customers with the principal, or excluding a scenario in which orders go directly from customers to the principal.
               
            
                  2.
               
               
                  Sales-related activity should be deemed to be negotiation for the purposes of Article 1(2) of Directive 86/653/EEC if it is specifically undertaken with a view to achieving the conclusion of contracts of sale or purchase of goods by the principal, and if the agent acts as an intermediary between the principal and his customers.