CELEX: C2002/305/27
Language: en
Date: 2002-12-07 00:00:00
Title: Case C-368/02: Action brought on 14 October 2002 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Kingdom of Spain

7.12.2002             EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                       C 305/15
Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Verwaltungs-                        purposes on the qualifying date, within the meaning of
gericht, Halle (Administrative Court, Halle) by order of                      either of the above regulations, and, if so, whether any of
that Court of 30 September 2002 in the administrative                         the aforesaid circumstances might cause it no longer to
proceedings between Mr Gerd Gschoßmann against Auth-                          be so regarded?
ority for Agriculture and the Reorganisation of Land,
                              South
                        (Case C-366/02)
                        (2002/C 305/26)                                 Action brought on 14 October 2002 by the Commission
                                                                        of the European Communities against the Kingdom of
                                                                                                       Spain
Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the                                           (Case C-368/02)
European Communities by order of the Verwaltungsgericht,
Halle (Administrative Court, Halle) of 30 September 2002,
                                                                                                 (2002/C 305/27)
received at the Court Registry on 14 Oktober 2002, for a
preliminary ruling in the administrative proceedings between
Mr Gerd Gschoßmann against Authority for Agriculture and
the Reorganisation of Land, South on the following questions:
                                                                        An action against the Kingdom of Spain was brought before
                                                                        the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 14 Octo-
1.   Does being under permanent crops, within the meaning               ber 2002 by the Commission of the European Communities,
     Article 9 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 of                represented by Isabel Martínez del Peral and Miguel França, of
     30 June 1992 establishing a support system for producers           its Legal Service, with an address for service in Luxembourg.
     of certain arable crops (OJ 1992 L 181, p. 12), or Article 7
     of Council Regulation (EC) No 1251/1999 of 17 May
     1999 (OJ 1999 L 160, p. 1), necessarily require that the           The Commission claims that the Court should:
     crops on the land, in this case apple trees, are being
     cultivated?
                                                                        —     declare that, by failing to adopt or, in the alternative, to
                                                                              notify to the Commission, within the time-limit laid
2.   Is the land still under permanent crops if the owner or                  down, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions
     tenant stops using insecticides during the growing season                necessary to comply fully with Directive 98/27/EC of the
     and no longer picks the apples thereafter?                               European Parliament and of the Council of 19 May
                                                                              1998 ( 1) on injunctions for the protection of consumers’
                                                                              interests, the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its
3.   If the answer to Question 2 is in the negative, does the                 obligations under Article 8(1) of the directive;
     land cease to be under permanent crops if the owner or
     tenant decides to fell the apple trees on it but does not in
     fact act on that decision before the qualifying date? Is the       —     order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.
     answer different if, before the qualifying date, another
     undertaking is contracted to carry out the clearing?
                                                                        Pleas in law and main arguments
4.   If the answer to Question 3 is also in the negative, does
     the land cease to be under permanent crops if the owner
     or tenant has felled the trees, with no intention of
                                                                        The period prescribed for transposition expired on 1 January
     planting new trees? In other words, is the deadline for
     clearing, namely 31 December 1991, also the relevant               2001. Although Spain has already transposed into domestic
                                                                        law Directive 2000/31/EC on electronic commerce, to which
     deadline for the purposes of the support system?
                                                                        Directive 98/27/EC also applies by virtue of the amendment
                                                                        introduced by Article 18 of Directive 2000/31/EC, the infringe-
5.   If the answer to Question 4 is also in the negative, does          ment alleged against Kingdom of Spain continues to exist in
     the land cease to be under permanent crops if it is cleared        its entirety so far as concerns the basic provisions of Directive
     of the felled trees before the qualifying date to prepare it       98/27/EC and its implementation in the sectors initially
     for use as arable land?                                            provided for in the annex thereto.
6.   If any of the above circumstances do result in the land            (1 ) OJ No L 166, 11.6.1998, p. 51.
     ceasing to be under permanent crops the question arises
     whether, once it is no longer under permanent crops, it
     is to be regarded as being used for non-agricultural