CELEX: C1996/180/86
Language: en
Date: 1996-06-22 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 16 April 1996 by Syndicat des Producteurs de Viande Bovine de la Coordination Rurale, Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de la Coordination Rurale and Philippe de Villiers against the Commission of the European Communities (Case T-53/96)

22 . 6 . 96               EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                   No C 180/35
Article 5 (4 ) which is the only provision applicable in this            Pleas in law and main arguments:
case .
                                                                         The applicants complain that the Commission failed, in the
In the alternative, even assuming that Sogecable were                    context of its task of monitoring trade between Member
'jointly controlled' by Prisa and Canal Plus Francia, as the             States, public health and consumer protection, to introduce
Commission maintains, the applicant states, first, that Prisa            appropriate measures for the protection of public health on
and Canal Plus Francia would not jointly have any of the                 the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalitis ( BSE),
powers and rights set out in Article 5 ( 4 ) ( b ) and, secondly,        known as ' mad cow disease '. They state that the steps taken
that, even if they jointly had the powers and rights laid down           by the Commission since 1 988 to prevent the spread of BSE,
in Article 5 ( 4 ) ( b ), their turnover should not be added to          and possibly Creutzfeldt-Jacob's disease, must be regarded
Sogecable's turnover, pursuant to Article 5 ( 4 ) ( c ).                 as inadequate, having regard to the embargo measures
                                                                         precipitately decided on 26 March 1996 by that same
                                                                         Commission, which nevertheless has no more information
                                                                         than previously on any potential risk. The applicants
                                                                         maintain that the Commission is liable, inasmuch as it
                                                                         breached the principle of proportionality and made an
                                                                         incorrect assessment of the facts, giving rise to a risk to
                                                                         public health and consumers and having a manifest impact
                                                                         on trade in bovine livestock in the European Union .
Action brought on 16 April 1996 by Syndicat des
Producteurs de Viande Bovine de la Coordination Rurale,
Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de la Coordination Rurale               Although the first recorded case of mad cow disease dates
and Philippe de Villiers against the Commission of the                   from 1986 , on a farm in Kent in the United Kingdom, and
                      European Communities                               despite numerous communications, scientific and
                                                                         journalistic, confidential and public, on the risks of the
                            ( Case T-53/96 )
                                                                         spread of BSE and the risks of human contamination, the
                              ( 96/C 180/86 )                            Commission, on the pretext of a lack of scientific certainty,
                                                                         failed to take the only measure to be taken in the face of a
                                                                         public health risk, namely the total prohibition of exports
                (Language of the case: French)                           and the possible slaughter of herds .
An action against the Commission of the European                         The applicants consider that the Commission failed to
Communities was brought before the Court of First                        perform its obligation to supervise and monitor
Instance of the European Communities on 16 April 1996 by                 intra-Community trade . As a result of that failure, they, like
the Syndicat des Producteurs de Viande Bovine de la                      any other European citizen, have suffered non-material
Coordination Rurale and the Syndicat des Producteurs de                  damage for which they seek reparation; some of the
Lait de la Coordination Rurale, established at L'Isle                    applicants also claim to have suffered material damage, the
Jourdain ( France ), and Philippe de Villiers , residing at Les          extent of which is to be established in the course of the
Aubretières ( France ), represented by Alexandre Varaut, of              proceedings .
the Paris Bar .
The applicants claim that the Court should:
— declare the European Commission liable, on the basis of
     Article 178 and the second paragraph of Article 215 of
     the Treaty on European Union, for failure to introduce              Action brought on 17 April 1996 by Oleifici Italiani SpA
     measures for the protection of public health on the                  and F.lli Rubino Industrie Olearie SpA against the
     outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalitis, known as                            Commission of the European Communities
     mad cow disease ;
                                                                                                      ( Case T-54/96 )
                                                                                                        ( 96/C 180/87
— order the European Union to pay the Syndicat des
     Producteurs de Viande Bovine de la Coordination
     Rurale, the Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de la                                      (Language of the case: Italian)
     Coordination Rurale and Philippe de Villiers the sum of
     FF 1 as token damages for the non-material damage
     suffered;
                                                                          An action against the Commission of the European
                                                                          Communities was brought before the Court of First
— appoint such expert as the Court may think fit to                       Instance of the European Communities on 17 April 1 996 by
     determine the loss suffered by the members of the                    Oleifici Italiani SpA, whose registered office is at Ostuni
     Syndicat des Producteurs de Viande Bovine de la                      ( BR ) ( Italy ), and F.lli Rubino Industrie Olearie SpA, whose
     Coordination Rurale and the Syndicat des Producteurs                 registered office is at Bari ( Italy ), represented by Antonio
     de Lait de la Coordination Rurale .                                  Tizzano and Gianmichele Roberti, both of the Naples Bar,