CELEX: C1996/158/11
Language: en
Date: 1996-06-01 00:00:00
Title: Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunal de Première Instance de Bruxelles by judgment of that court of 27 March 1996 in the case of Procureur du Roi, civil party: Union professionnelle belge des médecins spécialistes en ophtalmologie et chirurgie oculaire against Dennis Mac Queen and Others, party liable at civil law: Vision Express Belgium SA (Case C-108/96)

No C 158/6             EN                   Official Journal of the European Communities                                   1 . 6 . 96
Pleas in law and main arguments                                        Action brought on 3 April 1996 by the Commission of the
                                                                          European Communities against the Hellenic Republic
The mandatory nature of the third paragraph of Article 189                                    ( Case C- 1 09/96 )
and the first paragraph of Article 5 of the EC Treaty requires
Member States to adopt the measures necessary to comply                                          ( 96/C 158/ 12 )
with the Directives which are addressed to them within the
period prescribed therein. That period expired on 1 April              An action against the Hellenic Republic was brought before
 1993 without the Kingdom of Spain having brought into                 the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
force the necessary provisions .                                       3 April 1 996 by the Commission of the European
                                                                       Communities, represented by Dimitrios Gouloussis, Legal
(') OJ No L 78 , 26 . 3 . 1991 , p . 32 .                              Adviser at the Commission, with an address for service in
( 2 ) OJ No L 194, 25 . 7 . 1975 , p . 39 .                            Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gômez de la Cruz, of the
                                                                       Commission's Legal Service, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.
                                                                       The applicant claims that the Court should :
                                                                       — declare that the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its
Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunal de                      obligations under the EC Treaty by failing to adopt and
Première Instance de Bruxelles by judgment of that court of                also to communicate to the Commission in due time the
27 March 1996 in the case of Procureur du Roi, civil party:                laws, regulations and administrative provisions
Union professionnelle belge des médecins spécialistes en                   necessary in order to comply fully with Council
ophtalmologie et chirurgie oculaire against Dennis Mac                     Directive 91/371 /EEC of 20 June 1991 on the
Queen and Others , party liable at civil law: Vision Express               implementation of the Agreement between the European
                             Belgium SA                                    Economic Community and the Swiss Confederation
                         ( Case C-108/96 )                                 concerning direct insurance other than life
                                                                           assurance (');
                           ( 96/C 158/ 11 )
                                                                       — order the Hellenic Republic to pay the costs .
Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
European Communities by judgment of the Tribunal de                    Pleas in law and main arguments
Première Instance de Bruxelles ( Court of First Instance,
Brussels ) of 27 March 1996 , which was received at the                Under Article 189 ( 3 ) of the Treaty establishing the
Court Registry on 3 April 1 996 , for a preliminary ruling in          European Community directives are to be binding upon
the case of Procureur du Roi, civil party: Union                       each Member State to which they are addressed . The
professionnelle belge des médecins spécialistes en                     Hellenic Republic has not yet adopted the measures
ophtalmologie et chirurgie oculaire against Dennis Mac                 necessary to incorporate the relevant Directive fully into
Queen, Derek Pouton, Caria Emma Johanna Godts and                      Greek law and has also failed to communicate any such
Youssef Antoun, party liable at civil law: Vision Express              measures to the Commission .
Belgium SA, on the following questions :
                                                                       (') OJ No L 205 , 1991 , p . 48 .
1 . Is a prohibition, arising from the interpretation or the
      application of a provision of national law, restraining
      opticians in other Member States from offering within a
      Member State, for the correction of purely optical
      eyesight defects, services consisting of an objective
      eyesight examination, that is to say otherwise than by          Action brought on 3 April 1996 by the Commission of the
      using a method by which the client himself determines               European Communities against the Hellenic Republic
      the eyesight deficiencies and sees to the corection to be                              ( Case C-1 10/96 )
      made , compatible with Articles 5 , 52 and 59 of the EC
      Treaty ?                                                                                  ( 96/C 158 /13 )
2 . Are obstacles within a Member State to the marketing of           An action against the Hellenic Republic was brought before
      equipment which enables an objective eyesight                   the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
      examination to be carried out with a view to correcting          3 April 1996 by the Commission of the European
      purely optical eyesight defects, such as, for example, an        Communities, represented by Dimitrios Gouloussis, Legal
      autorefractor, arising from the ban imposed by national         Adviser at the Commission, with an address for service in
      law on opticians established in other Member States              Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gomez de la Cruz, of the
      preventing them from offering, within that Member                Commission's Legal Service, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.
      State, services consisting of an objective eyesight
      examination, that is to say a non-subjective                    The applicant claims that the Court should :
      examination, for the correction of purely optical
      eyesight defects, compatible with Article 30 of the EC          — declare that the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its
      Treaty ?                                                             obligations under the EC Treaty by failing to adopt and
                                                                           also to communicate to the Commission in due time
                                                                           the laws, regulations and administrative provisions