CELEX: C2002/191/30
Language: en
Date: 2002-08-10 00:00:00
Title: Case C-197/02: Action brought on 27 May 2002 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Kingdom of Spain

C 191/18              EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                    10.8.2002
Action brought on 27 May 2002 by the Commission of                      —    The mandatory exchange of the licence on grounds of
the European Communities against the Kingdom of Spain                        lack of space in which to record data is not provided for
                                                                             in Point 4 of Annex I to the directive: That provision does
                                                                             not provide for an exchange in such circumstances, nor
                        (Case C-195/02)                                      does Article 8, which deals precisely with the exchange
                                                                             of driving licences. Since the directive regulates these
                                                                             matters exhaustively, it must be concluded that it pre-
                                                                             cludes a provision which requires exchange under the
                        (2002/C 191/29)                                      terms laid down in Article 25(2) of the Regulations on
                                                                             Drivers.
                                                                        —    Transitional provision number 7 of the Regulations on
An action against Kingdom of Spain was brought before the                    Drivers is contrary to Annex III to the directive: Directive
Court of Justice of the European Communities on 27 May                       91/439/EEC does not provide for the recognition of
2002 by the Commission of the European Communities,                          acquired rights. According to Article 7(1)(a), the holder
represented by Fernando Castillo de la Torre and Wouter Wils,                of a driving licence must be able to meet minimum
acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg at               standards of physical and mental fitness for driving
the office of Luis Escobar Guerrero, also of the Legal Service,              power-driven vehicles, as laid down in Annex III to the
Wagner Centre.                                                               directive. Accordingly, when renewing the driving licence,
                                                                             the holder must meet those minimum standards. The
                                                                             Commission does not accept the argument put forward
                                                                             by the Spanish authorities that the absence of any kind of
                                                                             ‘grandfather clause’ is due to an oversight.
The applicant claims
that the Court should declare that the Kingdom of Spain:
                                                                        (1) OJ 1991 L 237, p. 1.
—     by adopting Articles 22 and 24 of the Regulations on
      Drivers, has infringed Article 1(2) of Directive 91/439/
      EEC (1);
—     by adopting Article 25(2) of the Regulations on Drivers,
      has infringed point 4 of Annex I to Directive 91/439/
      EEC;
—     by adopting transitional provision number 7 of the
      Regulations on Drivers, has infringed Article 7(19(a) of
      Directive 91/439/EEC;
                                                                        Action brought on 27 May 2002 by the Commission of
                                                                        the European Communities against the Kingdom of Spain
and order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.
                                                                                                 (Case C-197/02)
Pleas in law and main arguments
                                                                                                 (2002/C 191/30)
—     The obligation to enter the driving licence in a register of
      Drivers and Offenders is contrary to Article 1(2) of
      the Directive: the system of mandatory registration is
      disproportionate to the objective it pursues because the
      consequences of its non-observance are so severe. Use of
      the power conferred by the directive to apply Spanish
      rules on duration and medical checks is in no way                 An action against the Kingdom of Spain was brought before
      hindered or diluted by failure to register. Furthermore, in       the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 27 May
      order to ensure the effectiveness of a points system or           2002 by the Commission of the European Communities,
      any system which takes note of recidivism it is sufficient,       represented by Gregorio Valero Jordana, acting as Agent, with
      for example, for the details of the licence in question to        an address for service in Luxembourg at the office of Luis
      be recorded upon the first offence.                               Escobar Guerrero, also of the Legal Service, Wagner Centre.
 ---pagebreak--- 10.8.2002             EN                       Official Journal of the European Communities                                        C 191/19
The applicant claims that the Court should :                              European Communities in Case T-231/99 between Colin
                                                                          Joynson and the Commission of the European Communities,
                                                                          supported by Bass plc, was brought before the Court of Justice
—     Declare that, by maintaining in force Articles 9.4, 21.3
                                                                          of the European Communities on 3 June 2002 by Colin
      and 22.6 of Royal Decree No 2822/1998, under which
                                                                          Joynson, represented by B. Bedford, Barrister, instructed by
      motorcycles, three-wheeled vehicles, mopeds and bicycles
                                                                          Ferdinand Kelly, Solicitors.
      may not tow a trailer or semi trailer, the Kingdom of
      Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 18,
      28 and 49 EC and Article 11 of the European Economic
      Area (EEA) Agreement;
                                                                          The Appellant claims that the Court should:
—     Order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.
                                                                          a)    set aside the judgment appealed against in whole; and
Pleas in law and main arguments                                           b)    grant the relief sought by the appellant in the proceedings
                                                                                before the Court of First Instance; alternatively
The total prohibition on the use on the road of a two- or three-
                                                                          c)    remit the case to the Court of First Instance; and in any
wheeled vehicle towing a trailer constitutes, first, an obstacle
                                                                                event
to the importation of that type of vehicle from other Member
States or from the signatories to the EEA Agreement. Secondly,
such prohibition, inasmuch as it applies to persons travelling
to Spain in vehicles registered in other Member States, may               d)    order the defendant to pay the appellant’s costs.
constitute an obstacle to the freedom of movement of persons
and to the freedom to provide services. The Commission
points out that there is no technical reason to justify the
absolute ban adopted by the Spanish Government which
affects vehicles which fully meet all safety requirements for
their use on the public highway. Nor does the nature of                   Pleas in law and main arguments
Spanish roads justify total banning from the road of two- or
three-wheeled vehicles towing a trailer, which also includes a
ban on the use of such vehicles in urban areas and on those
                                                                          The Appellant maintains that the Court of First Instance erred
roads (motorways and dual carriageways, for example) which
                                                                          in law:
by their nature have eliminated the very risks highlighted by
the Spanish authorities.
                                                                          a)    In holding that the Commission, on the question of
                                                                                whether a beer supply agreement contributes to an
                                                                                improvement in distribution, was right to consider only
                                                                                the effect of possible deliberate price discrimination on
                                                                                the part of Bass plc and not the poor profitability said
                                                                                to be the consequence of the system of leases itself
                                                                                independently of any deliberate price discrimination,
Appeal brought on 3 June 2002 by Colin Joynson against
the judgment delivered on 21 March 2002 by the Third                      b)    In holding that a failure to specify beers in the purchasing
Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the European                          obligation by brand or denomination leading to the
Communities in Case T-231/99 (1) between Colin Joynson                          exclusion of a beer supply agreement from Regulation
and the Commission of the European Communities,                                 1984/83 (2) is, in the present case, a purely technical
                     supported by Bass plc                                      matter which does not prevent the agreement from
                                                                                complying with the spirit of that Regulation,
                       (Case C-204/02 P)
                                                                          c)    In concluding that an examination of the possibility of a
                                                                                grant of individual exemption to a beer supply under
                        (2002/C 191/31)                                         Article 81(3) EC can be limited to the application of the
                                                                                frame work analysis provided by Regulation 1984/83,
                                                                          d)    In holding that the price differential and the reference
An appeal against the judgment delivered on 21 March 2002                       group used to measure the differential can be limited by
by the Third Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the                      reference to Article 14(c)(2) of Regulation 1984/83,