Danmarks Rederiforening, acting on behalf of DFDS Torline A/S v LO Landsorganisationen i Sverige, acting on behalf of SEKO Sjöfolk Facket för Service och Kommunikation.
Date: 2004-02-05
23. First, it is clear from settled case-law that the object of the Brussels Convention is not to unify the procedural rules of the Contracting States, but to determine which court has jurisdiction in disputes concerning civil and commercial matters in intra-Community relations and to facilitate the enforcement of judgments (see, in particular, Case C-68/93  Shevill and Others  [1995] ECR I-415, paragraph 35, and Case C-80/00  Italian Leather  [2002] ECR I-4995, paragraph 43).
26. Such an interpretation would be contrary to the principles of sound administration of justice, legal certainty and the avoidance of multiplication of bases of jurisdiction as regards the same legal relationship that the Court has repeatedly held to be objectives of the Brussels Convention (see, in particular, Case C-269/95  Benincasa  [1997] ECR I-3767, paragraph 26, and  Italian Leather , paragraph 51).
27. Second, the Court has already held that it is not possible to accept an interpretation of Article 5(3) of the Brussels Convention according to which application of that provision is conditional on the actual occurrence of damage.  Likewise it has held that the finding that the courts for the place where the harmful event occurred are usually the most appropriate for deciding the case, in particular on the grounds of proximity and ease of taking evidence, is equally relevant whether the dispute concerns compensation for damage which has already occurred or relates to an action seeking to prevent the occurrence of damage (Case C-167/00  Henkel  [2002] ECR I-8111, paragraphs 46 and 48).
32. According to the case-law of the Court, liability in tort, delict or quasi-delict can only arise provided that a causal connection can be established between the damage and the event in which that damage originates (Case 21/76  Bier  ( " Mines de Potasse d ' Alsace " ) [1976] ECR 1735, paragraph 16). It cannot but be noted that in a situation such as that at issue in the main proceedings, a causal link could be established between the harm allegedly suffered by DFDS and SEKO ' s notice of industrial action.
34. Accordingly, the answer to Question 1(b) must be that for the application of Article 5(3) of the Brussels Convention to a situation such as that in the dispute in the main proceedings, it is sufficient that the industrial action is a necessary precondition of sympathy action which may result in harm.
Question 1(c)
36. In that regard, it must be observed that, according to settled case-law, the strengthening of the legal protection of persons established in the Community by enabling the claimant to identify easily the court in which he may sue and the defendant reasonably to foresee in which court he may be sued, is one of the objectives of the Brussels Convention (Case C-256/00  Besix  [2002] ECR I-1699, paragraphs 25 and 26, and Case C-334/00  Tacconi  [2002] ECR I-7357, paragraph 20).
40. Accord ing to settled case-law, where the place in which the event which may give rise to liability in tort, delict or quasi-delict occurs and the place where that event results in damage are not identical, the expression   " place where the harmful event occurred"  in Article 5(3) of the Brussels Convention must be understood as being intended to cover both the place where the damage occurred and the place of the event giving rise to it, so that the defendant may be sued, at the option of the plaintiff, in the courts for either of those places ( Mines de potasse d ' Alsace , paragraphs 24 and 25,  Shevill and Others , paragraph 20, and  Henkel , paragraph 44).
41. In this case, the event giving rise to the damage was the notice of industrial action given and publicised by SEKO in Sweden, the Contracting State where that union has its head office. Therefore, the place where the fact likely to give rise to tortious liability of the person responsible for the act can only be Sweden, since that is the place where the harmful event originated (see, to that effect,  Shevill and Others , paragraph 24).