CELEX: C1998/278/22
Language: en
Date: 1998-09-05 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 10 June 1998 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Hellenic Republic (Case C-215/98)

5.9.98                 EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                                   C 278/13
Ð the view taken by the Court of First Instance,                       programmes provided for by Article 6 of Council
     according to which the Commission had three months                Directive 91/157/EEC (1) of 18 March 1991 on
     in which to complete its examination, is consistent               batteries and accumulators containing certain
     neither with the Aids Code nor with the need,                     dangerous substances, the Hellenic Republic has failed
     recognised by case-law, to complete that examination              to fulfil its obligations under the Treaty and that
     expeditiously,                                                    Directive,
Ð infringement of Article 6(6) of the Steel Aids Code and          Ð order the Hellenic Republic to pay the costs.
     breach of the general principles of law relating to aid:
     in proceeding on the basis of the legally erroneous
     premise that the Commission's competence is limited           Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:
     in time, the Court of First Instance disregarded the
     case-law of the Court of Justice, according to which a
                                                                   Under the third paragraph of Article 189 of the EC Treaty,
     definitive order for the repayment of aid must
                                                                   directives are binding, as to the result to be achieved,
     invariably be preceded by a conclusive opinion of the
                                                                   upon each Member State to which they are addressed.
     Commission finding the aid substantively illegal. By
                                                                   Under the first paragraph of Article 5 of the Treaty,
     concluding from a failure to comply with a time-limit
                                                                   Member States are to take all appropriate measures,
     Ð which not even the Commission regards as a
                                                                   whether general or particular, to ensure fulfilment of the
     prescriptive deadline, and which it has in numerous
                                                                   obligations arising out of the Treaty or resulting from
     parallel cases treated as a mere administrative deadline
                                                                   action taken by the institutions of the Community.
     for notification purposes Ð that the aid was
     substantively illegal, the Court of First Instance
     unlawfully confused the formal and the substantive            It is not disputed that, up until the time when this
     aspects of the aid procedure,                                 application was drafted, the Hellenic Republic still had
                                                                   not drawn up programmes for the period from 18 March
Ð breach of the prohibition of discrimination: in dealing          1993 to 18 March 1997 as provided for by Article 6 of the
     extremely summarily with this head of claim, the              Directive, nor had it communicated to the Commission
     Court of First Instance failed to comment on the              programmes to secure the objectives laid down by that
     comparison made by the appellant between its own              Article.
     situation and the aid case of EKO Stahl,
                                                                   The Commission is therefore obliged to find that the
Ð breach of the principle of protection of legitimate              Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under
     expectations,                                                 the Treaty and Directive 91/157/EEC.
Ð breach of the obligation to provide a statement of               (1) OJ L 78, 26.3.1991, p. 38.
     reasons.
(1) OJ C 166, 30.5.1998, p. 14.
(2) Decision No 3855/91/ECSC (OJ L 362, 31.12.1991, p. 57).
                                                                   Action brought on 16 June 1998 by the Commission of
                                                                     the European Communities against the French Republic
                                                                                          (Case C-221/98)
Action brought on 10 June 1998 by the Commission of                                         (98/C 278/23)
 the European Communities against the Hellenic Republic
                        (Case C-215/98)
                                                                   An action against the French Republic was brought before
                         (98/C 278/22)                             the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
                                                                   16 June 1998 by the Commission of the European
                                                                   Communities, represented by Marie Wolfcarius, of its
An action against the Hellenic Republic was brought                Legal Service, acting as Agent, with an address for service
before the Court of Justice of the European Communities            in Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gómez de la Cruz,
on 10 June 1998 by the Commission of the European                  Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.
Communities, represented by Maria Kondou-Durande,
of its Legal Service, with an address for service in
Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gómez de la Cruz, of            The Commission of the European Communities claims
its Legal Service, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.                       that the Court should:
The Commission claims that the Court should:                       1. declare that:
Ð declare that, by failing to adopt or to communicate                  Ð by not allowing students, who are nationals of
     to the Commission within the prescribed period the                     other Member States and seek to have their right