CELEX: C1997/181/10
Language: en
Date: 1997-06-14 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 15 April 1997 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Italian Republic (Case C-142/97)

14 . 6 . 97              EN                   Official Journal of the European Communities                                     No C 181 /5
     ( b) in view of Austria's accession to the European                 15 April 1997 by the Commission of the European
           Union on 1 January 1995 ?                                     Communities, represented by Paolo Stancanelli, of its
                                                                         Legal Service, assisted by Claudio Tesauro, of the Naples
                                                                         Bar, acting as Agents, with an address for service in
     If Question 3 is to be answered in the negative :                   Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gomez de la Cruz,
                                                                         Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.
4. Does the failure to transpose merely Article 7 of the
     Directive within the period fixed in itself constitute a
     sufficiently serious breach of Community law and give               The applicant claims that the Court should:
     rise to a right of reparation on the part of the persons
     injured where the Member State has adopted relevant
                                                                         — declare that, by failing to adopt the provisions
     measures for the transposition of all other provisions                     necessary to comply with Commission Directive
     of the Directive within that period ?                                      94/1 /EC ( 1 ) of 6 January 1994 adapting some
                                                                                technicalities of Council Directive 75/324/EEC ( 2 ) on
5 . Must Article 7 of the Directive be interpreted as                           the approximation of the laws of the Member States
     meaning that its objectives are not achieved where                         relating to aerosol dispensers, the Italian Republic has
     national rules :                                                           failed to fulfil its obligations under that Directive,
     ( a ) require, for the purpose of covering the risk, only           — order the Italian Republic to pay the costs.
           a contract of insurance or a bank guarantee for a
           sum insured ( insurance cover) of at least 5 % of
           turnover from an organizer's activity as organizer            Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:
           in the corresponding quarter of the previous
           calendar year,
                                                                         Under Article 189 of the EC Treaty, according to which a
     ( b ) require the organizer, in the first year of his               directive is to be binding, as to the result to be achieved,
           activity, to take his estimated turnover from his             upon each Member State to which it is addressed,
           intended activity as organizer as the basis for               Member States are required to observe the time-limits laid
           determining the sum insured ( insurance cover ),              down in directives for their transposition . That time-limit
                                                                         expired on 1 October 1994 without the Italian Republic
     ( c ) do not thereby take into consideration increases in           having brought into force the necessary provisions in
           the organizer's turnover during the current year,             order to comply with the Directive referred to in the
           and                                                           Commission 's application .
     ( d ) do not provide for any duty on the Member State               (') OJNoL 23 , 28 . 1 . 1994, p . 28 .
                                                                         ( 2 ) OJ No L 147, 9 . 6 . 1975 , p . 40 .
           to monitor the security required ?
6.   Is there a direct causal link between a failure to
     transpose Article 7 of the Directive on time or
     completely and a loss on the part of the consumer
     which renders the Member State liable to refund the
     unsecured payments in full even where the Member                    Action brought on 15 April 1997 by the Commission of
     State proves that unlawful acts on the part of the                       the European Communities against the Italian Republic
     organizer (a third party ) or a wholly extraordinary or
     unforeseeable      increase   in   the  risk  are  the  cause                                   ( Case C-142/97
     ( essential contributory cause ) of the loss ?                                                    ( 97/C 181 / 10 )
(') OJ No L 158 , 1990, p . 59 .
                                                                         An action against the Italian Republic was brought before
                                                                         the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
                                                                         15 April 1997 by the Commission of the European
                                                                         Communities, represented by Gotz zur Hausen, Legal
                                                                         Adviser, Paolo Stancanelli, of its Legal Service, assisted by
                                                                         Claudio Tesauro, of the Naples Bar, acting as Agents, with
Action brought on 15 April 1997 by the Commission of                     an address for service in Luxembourg at the office of
   the European Communities against the Italian Republic                 Carlos Gomez de la Cruz, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.
                          ( Case C-141 /97
                            ( 97/C 181 /09 )                             The applicant claims that the Court should :
An action against the Italian Republic was brought before                — declare that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on                             or administrative provisions necessary to comply with
 ---pagebreak--- No C 181 /6             EN                       Official Journal of the European Communities                                    14 . 6 . 97
     Council Directive 92/43/EEC ( J ) of 21 May 1992 on                    Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Oberlandesge­
     the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna                 richt Frankfurt am Main by order of that court of
     and flora, the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its               25 March 1997 in the case of Deutsche Post AG v. GZS
     obligations under that Directive,                                                 Gesellschaft fur Zahlungssysteme mbH
                                                                                                   ( Case C-147/97)
— order the Italian Republic to pay the costs .
                                                                                                     ( 97/C 181 /12 )
Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:
Under Article 189 of the EC Treaty, according to which a                    Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
directive is to be binding, as to the result to be achieved,                European Communities by the Oberlandesgericht ( Higher
upon each Member State to which it is addressed,                            Regional Court) Frankfurt am Main by order of that court
Member States are required to observe the time-limits laid                  of 25 March 1997 in the case of Deutsche Post AG v.
down in directives for their transposition. That time-limit                 GZS Gesellschaft fur Zahlungssysteme mbH on the
expired on 5 June 1992 without the Italian Republic                         following questions :
having brought into force the necessary provisions in
order to comply with the Directive referred to in the
Commission's application .
(') OJ No L 206 , 22 . 7. 1992 , p . 71 .                                   1 . Must Article 90 of the EC Treaty be interpreted as
                                                                                meaning that, in so far as a law ratifying the
                                                                                Conventions     of    the   Universal  Postal  Union      of
                                                                                 14 December 1989 creates the right for the postal
                                                                                service of Member State A to demand internal rates
                                                                                for the delivery of letters sent in Member State B or to
                                                                                refuse delivery if internal rates are not paid, where the
                                                                                content of the letters is determined by an undertaking
Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Cour du Tra­                        in Member State A and transmitted by electronic data
vail de Liege by judgment of that court of 28 March 1997                        transfer to an undertaking having its seat in Member
in the case of Office National des Pensions ( ONP) v.                           State B in order to be printed out, prepared for
                          Francesco Conti
                                                                                dispatch and handed over to the postal service there,
                          ( Case C-143 /97 )                                    that law constitutes a State measure by which,
                                                                                contrary to Article 90 ( 1 ) of the EC Treaty, a measure
                            ( 97/C 181 / 11 )
                                                                                was adopted conflicting with Article 86 of the EC
                                                                                Treaty which does not fall within the exceptions
                                                                                contemplated by Article 90 ( 2 )?
Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
European Communities by a judgment of the Cour du Tra­
vail de Liege ( Higher Labour Court, Liege ) of 28 March
1997, which was received at the Court Registry on
16 April 1997, for a preliminary ruling in the case of Of­                  2 . Are Articles 30 et seq. and 59 et seq. of the EC Treaty
fice National des Pensions v. Francesco Conti on the                            to be interpreted as meaning that the power of the
following question:                                                             postal service in Member State A to demand internal
                                                                                rates for the delivery of letters sent in Member State B
                                                                                to addressees resident in Member State A or to refuse
Is the concept of a provision for reduction of benefit in                       to deliver such letters if internal rates are not paid is
Articles 12 ( 2 ), 46 ( 3 ) and 46 ( b ) of Regulation ( EEC )                  contrary to the guarantee of the free movement of
No 1408/71 (') to be interpreted as referring to a                              goods where the content of the letters is determined by
legislative provision of a Member State which, in                               an undertaking in Member State A and transmitted by
providing that the amount of the retirement pension of an                       electronic data transfer to an undertaking having its
employed person who has not completed a total of                                seat in Member State B in order to be printed out,
30 years of employment but has completed at least                               prepared for dispatch and handed over to the postal
25 years is to be increased by a supplement, states that                        service there ?
that supplement is to be equal to the difference between
the amount of the retirement pension which the worker
would have received if he had in fact been employed for
30 years and the total amount of the retirement pensions
which he can claim under a national scheme or a scheme                      3 . In the event that the answer to the above questions
of another Member State ?                                                       submitted for a preliminary ruling discloses an
                                                                                infringement of Community law only because the
(') OJ , English Special Edition 1971 ( II ), p. 416 .
                                                                                postal service of Member State A receives or can
                                                                                enforce, by refusing to deliver mail, payment of
                                                                                internal rates in addition to the postal charges paid in
                                                                                Member State B or in addition to the terminal dues