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38. On the other hand, the deduction system is meant to relieve the trader entirely of the burden of the VAT payable or paid in the course of all his economic activities. The common system of VAT consequently ensures neutrality of taxation of all economic activities, whatever their purpose or results, provided that they are themselves subject in principle to VAT (see, to that effect, Case 268/83 Rompelman [1985] ECR 655, paragraph 19; Case C-37/95 Belgian State v Ghent Coal Terminal [1998] ECR I-1, paragraph 15; Joined Cases C-110/98 to C-147/98 Gabalfrisa and Others [2000] ECR I-1577, paragraph 44; Midland Bank , cited above, paragraph 19, and Abbey National, cited above, paragraph 24).

53 Even assuming that the equipment manufacturer's product numbers are, as such, distinguishing marks within the meaning of Article 3a(1)(g) of Directive 84/450 as amended, it will in any event be necessary, when assessing whether the condition laid down in that provision has been observed, to have regard to the 15th recital of the preamble to Directive 97/55, which states that the use of a trade mark or distinguishing mark does not breach the right to the mark where it complies with the conditions laid down by Directive 84/450 as amended, the aim being solely to distinguish between the products and services of the advertiser and those of his competitor and thus to highlight differences objectively.

55. Directive 89/48 seeks to remove obstacles to the pursuit of a profession in a Member State other than that which issued the diploma establishing the professional qualifications concerned. It is clear from the first, third and fifth recitals in the preamble to that directive that a certificate attesting professional qualifications cannot be treated in the same way as a ‘diploma’ for the purposes of that directive unless those qualifications were acquired, wholly or in part, under the education system of the Member State which issued the certificate in question. The Court has also stated that a diploma facilitates the taking-up or pursuit of a profession in so far as it proves the possession of an additional qualification (see, to that effect, Case C-19/92 Kraus [1993] ECR I-1663, paragraphs 18 to 23, and Case C-285/01 Burbaud [2003] ECR I-8219, paragraphs 47 to 53).

75. It is for the national court to determine whether the national legislation, taking account of the detailed rules for its application, actually serves the aims which might justify it, and whether the restrictions it imposes are disproportionate in the light of those aims.

29. The obligation on the Member States to propose to the Commission the declassification of a site on the list of SCIs which has become irretrievably unsuitable to achieve the objectives of the Habitats Directive, is all the greater when that site includes land belonging to an owner whose exercise of his right to property is restricted as a result of that listing, when it is no longer warranted for the site to remain subject to the provisions of the directive. As the Advocate General noted in point 39 of her Opinion, as long as the quality of the site in question meets the requirements for its classification, such restrictions of the right to property are, as a rule, justified by the objective of protecting the environment laid down in that directive (see, to that effect, Case C‑416/10 Križan and Others EU:C:2013:8, paragraphs 113 to 115). However, where those qualities definitively disappear, continuing to restrict the use of that site might be an infringement of the right to property.

21 It is not necessary in this respect to find that the provision in question does in practice affect a substantially higher proportion of migrant workers. It is sufficient that it is liable to have such an effect. Further, the reasons why a migrant worker chooses to make use of his freedom of movement within the Community are not to be taken into account in assessing whether a national provision is discriminatory. The possibility of exercising so fundamental a freedom as the freedom of movement of persons cannot be limited by such considerations, which are purely subjective.

33 Next, it must be pointed out that in the context of Article 177 of the Treaty the Court has no jurisdiction to rule either on the interpretation of provisions of national laws or regulations or on their conformity with Community law. It may, however, supply the national court with an interpretation of Community law that will enable that court to resolve the legal problem before it (Case C-17/92 Federación de Distribuidores Cinematográficos v Spanish State [1993] ECR I-2239, paragraph 8).

39. More specifically, the objective of Directive 90/434 is to eliminate fiscal barriers to cross‑border restructuring of undertakings, by ensuring that any increases in the value of shares are not taxed until their actual disposal (Case C‑321/05 Kofoed [2007] ECR I‑5795, paragraph 32, and Case C‑285/07 A.T . [2008] ECR I­­‑9329, paragraph 28).

34. As regards the second plea of inadmissibility, admittedly, the subject‑matter of proceedings brought under Article 258 TFEU is circumscribed by the pre-litigation procedure provided for in that provision and, consequently, the Commission’s reasoned opinion and the application must be based on the same complaints, however that requirement cannot go so far as to mean that in every case exactly the same wording must be used in each, where the subject-matter of the proceedings has not been extended or altered (Case C‑229/00 Commission v Finland [2003] ECR I-5727, paragraphs 44 and 46; Case C‑433/03 Commission v Germany [2005] ECR I-6985, paragraph 28; and Case C‑195/04 Commission v Finland [2007] ECR I-3351, paragraph 18).

29 The number of participants in the public procurement procedure concerned as well as the number of participants who have instigated review procedures and the differing legal grounds relied on by those participants are irrelevant to the question of the applicability of the principle established by the Fastweb (C‑100/12, EU:C:2013:448) case-law.

46. The Treaty provisions on freedom of movement for persons are intended to facilitate the pursuit by EU nationals of occupational activities of all kinds throughout the European Union, and they preclude measures which might place those nationals at a disadvantage when they wish to pursue an economic activity in the territory of another Member State (see Case C-464/02 Commission v Denmark [2005] ECR I-7929, paragraph 34 and case-law cited; Commission v Portugal , paragraph 15; Commission v Sweden , paragraph 17; Commission v Germany , paragraph 21; and Commission v Greece , paragraph 43).

138. It is also apparent from that provision that the Court of First Instance cannot re-evaluate the factual circumstances in the light of evidence adduced for the first time before it. The legality of a decision of a Board of Appeal of OHIM must be assessed in the light of the information available to it when it adopted that decision.

46. With regard to judicial review of the conditions referred to in the previous paragraph, the European Union legislature must be allowed a broad discretion in an area which entails political, economic and social choices on its part, and in which it is called upon to undertake complex assessments. The legality of a measure adopted in that sphere can be affected only if the measure is manifestly inappropriate having regard to the objective which the competent institutions are seeking to pursue ( S.P.C.M. and Others , paragraph 42 and case-law there cited).

Plus particulièrement, en ce qui concerne une demande tendant au réexamen d’une décision antérieure devenue définitive, il résulte d’une jurisprudence constante que seule l’existence de faits nouveaux substantiels peut justifier la présentation d’une telle demande. Ne constitue pas un fait nouveau substantiel, au sens de cette jurisprudence, un fait qui ne modifie pas de façon substantielle la situation du requérant, telle qu’elle se présentait lors de l’adoption de la décision antérieure devenue définitive (voir ordonnance du 26 mars 2003, Inpesca/Commission, C‑170/01 P, non publiée, EU:C:2003:181, points 72 et 73 ainsi que jurisprudence citée).

82. The prohibition on measures having equivalent effect to quantitative restrictions set out in Article 28 EC covers all measures which are capable of hindering, directly or indirectly, actually or potentially, intra-Community trade (see, in particular, Case 8/74 Dassonville [1974] ECR 837, paragraph 5; Case C‑192/01 Commission v Denmark [2003] ECR I‑9693, paragraph 39; Commission v France , paragraph 22; and Commission v Germany , paragraph 80).

35. It follows that, in the various situations in which a carrier is held liable pursuant to Chapter III of the Montreal Convention, the ‘equitable balance of interests’ referred to requires that there be clear limits on compensation relating to the total damage sustained by each passenger in each of those situations, regardless of the nature of the damage caused to that passenger.

25. According to established case-law, an applicant’s interest in bringing proceedings must, in the light of the purpose of the action, exist at the time at which the action is brought, failing which it will be inadmissible. That purpose must continue, like the interest in bringing proceedings, until the final decision, failing which there will be no need to adjudicate, which presupposes that the action must be liable, if successful, to procure an advantage to the party bringing it (see, to that effect, Case 53/85 AKZO Chemie and AKZO Chemie UK v Commission [1986] ECR 1965, paragraph 21; and, by analogy, Case C‑19/93 P Rendo and Others v Commission [1995] ECR I‑3319, paragraph 13; Case C‑174/99 P Parliament v Richard [2000] ECR I‑6189, paragraph 33; and Case C‑362/05 P Wunenburger v Commission [2007] ECR I‑4333, paragraph 42).

54. Finally, the object of the representation is specifically to avoid any element of subjectivity in the process of identifying and perceiving the sign. Consequently, the means of graphic representation must be unequivocal and objective.

37 Finally, Ms Grant submits that it follows from P v S that differences of treatment based on sexual orientation are included in the `discrimination based on sex' prohibited by Article 119 of the Treaty.

15 The answer to the first question referred by the national court must therefore be that Article 119 of the EEC Treaty has to be interpreted as precluding a collective agreement, entered into within the national public service, from providing for the period of service of employees working for at least three-quarters of normal working time to be taken fully into account for reclassification in a higher salary grade, where only one-half of such period of service is taken into account in the case of employees whose working hours are between one-half and three-quarters of such normal working time and the latter group of employees comprises a considerably smaller percentage of men than women, unless the employer can prove that such a provision is justified by factors whose objectivity depends in particular on the relationship between the nature of the duties performed and the experience afforded by the performance of those duties after a certain number of working hours have been completed. The second question

26. The subject-matter of proceedings under Article 226 EC is therefore delimited by the pre-litigation procedure governed by that provision. It follows that the application must be founded on the same grounds and pleas as the reasoned opinion (see, inter alia, Commission v Italy , cited above, paragraph 11).

5 THE PROVISIONS OF THE AGREEMENT, FROM THE COMING INTO FORCE THEREOF, FORM AN INTEGRAL PART OF COMMUNITY LAW .

30. According to settled case‑law, the purpose of coordinating at European Union level the procedures for the award of public contracts is to eliminate barriers to the freedom to provide services and goods and therefore to protect the interests of traders established in another Member State ( Commission v Ireland , paragraph 27 and the case‑law cited).

30 In the first place, Directive 77/187 applies, by virtue of Article 1(1), to the transfer of an undertaking, business or part of a business to another employer as a result of a legal transfer or merger.

54. Under Article 225 EC, the first paragraph of Article 58 of the Statute of the Court of Justice and Article 112(1), first subparagraph, (c) of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice, an appeal must indicate precisely the contested elements of the judgment which the appellant seeks to have set aside and also the legal arguments specifically advanced in support of the appeal. That requirement is not satisfied by an appeal which, without even including an argument specifically identifying the error of law allegedly vitiating the judgment under appeal, merely repeats or reproduces verbatim the pleas in law and arguments previously submitted to the Court of First Instance (see, inter alia, Case C‑352/98 P Bergaderm and Goupil v Commission [2000] ECR I-5291, paragraphs 34 and 35, and Case C‑208/03 P Le Pen v Parliament [2005] ECR I‑6051, paragraph 39).

41 Next, the principle of equal treatment implies an obligation of transparency in order to enable compliance with it to be verified (see, by analogy, Case C-275/98 Unitron Scandinavia and 3-S [1999] ECR I-8291, paragraph 31).

62. In that regard, it must be noted that, subject to the right to reparation which flows directly from EU law, where those conditions are satisfied, it is on the basis of the rules of national law on liability that the State must make reparation for the consequences of the loss or damage caused, provided that the conditions for reparation of loss or damage laid down by national law are not less favourable than those relating to similar domestic claims (principle of equivalence) and are not so framed as to make it, in practice, impossible or excessively difficult to obtain reparation (principle of effectiveness) ( Köbler , paragraph 58; Case C‑524/04 Test Claimants in the Thin Cap Group Litigation [2007] ECR I‑2107, paragraph 123; and Transportes Urbanos y Servicios Generales , paragraph 31).

63. Au regard de l’ensemble des considérations qui précèdent, il y a lieu de constater que, en imposant, au moyen des listes de règles de construction visées par les codes de construction établis par les Länder, aux produits de construction visés par les normes harmonisées EN 681-2:2000, «Garnitures d’étanchéité en caoutchouc – Spécification des matériaux pour garnitures d’étanchéité utilisées dans le domaine de l’eau et du drainage – Partie 2: Élastomères thermoplastiques», EN 13162:2008, «Produits isolants thermiques pour le bâtiment – Produits manufacturés en laine minérale (MW) – Spécification», et EN 13241-1, «Portes et portails industriels, commerciaux et de garage – Norme de produit – Partie 1: Produits sans caractéristiques coupe-feu, ni pare-fumée», et revêtus du marquage «CE», des exigences supplémentaires pour leur accès effectif au marché et leur utilisation sur le territoire allemand, la République fédérale d’Allemagne a manqué aux obligations qui lui incombaient en vertu des articles 4, paragraphe 2, et 6, paragraphe 1, de la directive 89/106. Sur les dépens

32 It is settled case-law of the Court that, in the interests of legal certainty and ease of verification, the decisive criterion for the classification of goods is in general to be sought in their objective characteristics and properties, as defined in the wording of the relevant heading of the CN and of the notes to the sections or chapters (judgments in Wünsche, 145/81, EU:C:1982:254, paragraph 12; Wiener SI, C‑338/95, EU:C:1997:552, paragraph 10; Intermodal Transports, C‑495/03, EU:C:2005:552, paragraph 47; Heuschen & Schrouff Oriëntal Foods Trading, C‑375/07, EU:C:2008:645, paragraph 43; and TSI, C‑183/15, EU:C:2015:808, paragraph 24).

54. As regards the possibility for a consumer protection association to rely on Article 47 of the Charter, it must be pointed out that the refusal to grant the association leave to intervene in proceedings involving a consumer does not affect its right to an effective judicial remedy to protect its rights as an association of that kind, including its rights to collective action as recognised by Article 7(2) of Directive 93/13.

45. As regards, first, the principle of proportionality, it must be noted that the Court has already had occasion to find, in Case C-344/04 IATA and ELFAA [2010] ECR I-403, paragraphs 78 to 92, that Articles 5 to 7 of Regulation No 261/2004 are not invalid by reason of infringement of the principle of proportionality.

235. As the Advocate General has observed in point 93 of her Opinion, a biological species is the totality of all individual beings which form a reproducing community.

60. It should be pointed out that the Court of First Instance, first of all, recalled, in paragraph 36 of the judgment under appeal, the settled case-law of the Court of Justice stating that the need to act within a reasonable time in conducting administrative proceedings relating to competition policy is a general principle of Community law whose observance is ensured by the Community judicature (see Joined Cases C-238/99 P, C-244/99 P, C-245/99 P, C-247/99 P, C-250/99 P to C-252/99 P and C-254/99 Limburgse Vinyl Maatschappij and Others v Commission [2002] ECR I-8375, paragraphs 167 to 171).

26 MOREOVER , THE CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN BMW BELGIUM AND SOME OF ITS DEALERS DURING THE PERIOD FROM 29 SEPTEMBER 1975 TO 20 FEBRUARY 1976 DOES NOT REVEAL ANY FACTOR SUGGESTING THAT THE CIRCULARS OF 29 SEPTEMBER 1975 WERE CONCEIVED BY THEIR AUTHORS AS IMPOSING AN EXPORT PROHIBITION APPLYING ONLY TO NON-APPROVED DEALERS . THE INDIVIDUAL LETTERS SENT BY BMW BELGIUM IN THE COURSE OF THAT CORRESPONDENCE TO SOME BELGIAN DEALERS ENGENDERED CONFUSION BETWEEN PERMITTED ACTIVITIES AND PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES AND WERE SOMETIMES WORDED IN SUCH A WAY AS TO GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT NO EXPORT SALE , EVEN TO CONSUMERS OR THEIR AGENTS , COULD BE ALLOWED .

132. It should be borne in mind at the outset that the subject matter of an action brought under Article 258 TFEU is circumscribed by the pre-litigation procedure laid down in that provision. Consequently, the Commission’s reasoned opinion and its application must be based on the same complaints (see Case C-211/08 Commission v Spain [2010] ECR I-5267, paragraph 33).

33. Moreover, the subject-matter of an action brought under Article 226 EC is circumscribed by the pre-litigation procedure laid down in that provision. Consequently, the Commission’s reasoned opinion and its application must be based on the same complaints ( Commission v Finland , paragraph 18).

29 The French Government raised the same objection in the action for failure to fulfil obligations relating to the fishing years 1988 and 1990 brought against it by the Commission. That objection was dismissed by the Court of Justice in its judgment in Case C-333/99 Commission v France [2001] ECR I-1025, paragraphs 23 to 25). In particular, when exercising its powers under Articles 211 EC and 226 EC, the Commission does not have to show that there is a specific interest in bringing the action since its function is, in the general interest of the Community, to ensure that Member States give effect to the EC Treaty and to obtain a declaration of any failure to fulfil the obligations deriving therefrom, with a view to bringing it to an end (Case 167/73 Commission v France [1974] ECR 359, paragraph 15; Case C-431/92 Commission v Germany [1995] ECR I-2189, paragraph 21; Case C-365/97 Commission v Italy [1999] ECR I-7773, paragraph 59; and Case C-333/99 Commission v France, cited above, paragraph 23).

20 That argument cannot be accepted. The fact is that the expression `rolls of tobacco capable of being smoked as they are' describes a finished product. A cigar, even one which has to be cut in order to be smoked, is a finished product. But the same is not true of a roll of tobacco which, as in the main proceedings, has to be assembled with another product, namely a separately-marketed cigarette-paper tube, to yield a product capable of being smoked as it is.

43. Although the Court has no jurisdiction under Article 234 EC to apply a rule of Community law to a particular case and thus to judge a provision of national law by reference to such a rule, it may none the less, within the framework of the judicial cooperation provided for by that article and on the basis of the material presented to it, provide the national court with an interpretation of Community law which may be useful to it in assessing the effects of that provision (Case 20/87 Gauchard [1987] ECR 4879, paragraph 5; Joined Cases C-515/99, C‑519/99 to C-524/99 and C‑526/99 to C-540/99 Reisch and Others [2002] ECR I-2157, paragraph 22; and Case C-6/01 Anomar and Others [2003] ECR I-8621, paragraph 37).

65. À cet égard, il ressort de l’article 58, premier alinéa, du statut de la Cour que les moyens du pourvoi doivent être fondés sur des arguments tirés de la procédure devant le Tribunal. En outre, selon l’article 113, paragraphe 2, du règlement de procédure de la Cour, le pourvoi ne peut modifier l’objet du litige devant le Tribunal. La compétence de la Cour, dans le cadre du pourvoi, est limitée à l’appréciation de la solution juridique qui a été donnée aux moyens débattus devant les premiers juges. Une partie ne saurait donc modifier l’objet dudit litige en soulevant pour la première fois devant la Cour un moyen qu’elle aurait pu soulever devant le Tribunal mais qu’elle n’a pas soulevé, dès lors que cela reviendrait à lui permettre de saisir la Cour, dont la compétence en matière de pourvoi est limitée, d’un litige plus étendu que celui dont a eu à connaître le Tribunal (voir, en ce sens, arrêts du 14 octobre 2010, Deutsche Telekom/Commission, C-280/08 P, Rec. p. I‑9555, point 34; du 29 septembre 2011, Elf Aquitaine/Commission, C‑521/09 P, non encore publié au Recueil, point 35, et du 3 mai 2012, Comap/Commission, C-290/11 P, point 42).

31 The Court has already held in Deutsche Milchkontor, paragraph 31, that in the case of a demand for repayment of sums unduly granted, Community law does not preclude grounds for excluding repayment from being taken into account where these are related to the administration's own conduct and it can therefore prevent them from occurring.

26 In the present case, Directive 79/112 represents, as follows specifically from its first and eighth recitals, only the initial stage of a harmonization process which is designed progressively to eliminate all obstacles to the free movement of foodstuffs resulting from the differences which exist between the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States with respect to the labelling of those products.

30. Here, it should be noted as a preliminary point that it is not clear from the order for reference on the basis of which version of the OUG the pollution tax was levied on Mr Nicula on the date of the registration of his vehicle in Romania. However, the Court has previously held that Article 110 TFEU precludes a tax such as the pollution tax introduced by OUG No 50/2008 both in its original version and as amended (see, to that effect, judgments in Tatu , EU:C:2011:219, paragraphs 58 and 61, and Nisipeanu , C‑263/10, EU:C:2011:466, paragraphs 27 and 29).

40. In order to ensure the effectiveness of the protection which Directive 93/13 is intended to provide, the Court has held on numerous occasions that such an imbalance may only be corrected by positive action unconnected with the actual parties to the contract ( Océano Grupo Editorial and Salvat Editores , paragraph 27; Mostaza Claro , paragraph 26; Asturcom Telecomunicaciones , paragraph 31; and the order in Pohotovost’ , paragraph 39).

52. Accordingly, as regards Articles 77(2)(b)(i) and 78(2)(b)(i) of Regulation No 1408/71, the Court has already held that those provisions cannot be interpreted in such as way as to deprive the worker, or the orphan of a deceased worker, of entitlement to more favourable benefits, by the substitution of benefits granted in the Member State of the new residence for benefits previously acquired solely by reason of the legislation of another Member State (see, to that effect, in particular Case 733/79 Laterza [1980] ECR-1915, paragraphs 9 and 10; Case 807/79 Gravina [1980] ECR-2205, paragraph 8; Case 320/82 D’Amario [1983] ECR-3811, paragraph 5; Case 269/87 Ventura [1988] ECR-6411, paragraph 14; and Bastos Moriana and Others , paragraph 16).

92 It should also be noted that the Court has already held, in paragraph 33 of Commission v Denmark, that the duty to observe the principle of equal treatment lies at the very heart of all the public procurement directives. The documents in the main proceedings have not disclosed anything to show that, as regards the contracting entity's choice of award criteria, the interpretation of that principle should depend in this case on the particular directive applicable to the contract in question.

80 An indication of the legal basis is essential in the light of the principle of conferral of powers enshrined in Article 5(2) TEU, according to which the European Union must act within the limits of the competences conferred on it by the Member States in the Treaties to attain the objectives set out in the Treaties with respect to both the internal action and the international action of the European Union. The choice of the appropriate legal basis has constitutional significance, since, having only conferred powers, the European Union must link the acts which it adopts to provisions of the FEU Treaty which actually empower it to adopt such acts (judgment of 25 October 2017, Commission v Council (WRC‑15), C‑687/15, EU:C:2017:803, paragraphs 48 and 49].

8 THOSE DEFINITIONS SHOW THAT THE SCOPE OF THE TERM "ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES" IS VERY WIDE, INASMUCH AS IT COVERS ALL THE SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE LIBERAL PROFESSIONS, AND THAT THE TERM IS OBJECTIVE IN CHARACTER, IN THE SENSE THAT THE ACTIVITY IS CONSIDERED PER SE AND WITHOUT REGARD TO ITS PURPOSE OR RESULTS .

23 The application of Article 86 of the Treaty by the national authorities is, in principle, governed by national procedural rules (Case C-60/92 Otto v Postbank [1993] ECR I-5683, paragraph 14).

47. Admittedly, that criterion cannot be regarded as exclusive, inasmuch as pensions paid under statutory social security schemes may reflect, wholly or in part, pay in respect of work ( Beune , paragraph 44; Evrenopoulos , paragraph 20; Griesmar , paragraph 29; Niemi , paragraph 46; and Schönheit and Becker , paragraph 57).

98. The Court has consistently held that any inadequacy in the statement of reasons for a legislative measure is not sufficient to cause the Community to incur liability (Case 106/81 Kind v EEC [1982] ECR 2885, paragraph 14; Case C-119/88 AERPO and Others v Commission [1990] ECR I-2189, paragraph 20).

42. Regarding the plea of inadmissibility put forward by the Italian Republic, it should be recalled that it is settled case-law that the question whether a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations must be determined by reference to the situation prevailing in the Member State at the end of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion. Accordingly, even where the infringement has been remedied after that period has expired, there is still an interest in pursuing the action in order to establish the basis of liability which a Member State may incur, as a result of its infringement, to, amongst others, persons who derive rights from the infringement (see, to that effect, Case C-29/90 Commission v Greece [1992] ECR I‑1971, paragraph 12, and Case C-519/03 Commission v Luxembourg [2005] ECR I‑3067, paragraphs 18 and 19).

80 The Court has held, in proceedings concerning the application of Article 93(2) of the Treaty, that publication of a notice in the Official Journal of the European Communities is an appropriate means of informing all the parties concerned that a procedure has been initiated (Case 323/82 Intermills v Commission [1984] ECR 3809, paragraph 17). That communication is intended to obtain from persons concerned all information required for the guidance of the Commission with regard to its future action (Case 70/72 Commission v Germany [1973] ECR 813, paragraph 19). Such a procedure also guarantees to the other Member States and the sectors concerned an opportunity to make their views known (Case 84/82 Germany v Commission [1984] ECR 1451, paragraph 13). The same principles apply in regard to the Fifth Code.

42. It should be noted at the outset that measures adopted by the Member States in connection with the legitimate requirements of national interest are not excluded in their entirety from the application of Community law solely because they are taken in the interests of public security or national defence (see, to that effect, Case C‑186/01 Dory [2003] ECR I‑2479, paragraph 30).

30. La Cour a également précisé que, dès l’acquittement d’une taxe d’immatriculation dans un État membre, le montant de cette taxe s’incorpore dans la valeur du véhicule. Ainsi, lorsqu’un véhicule immatriculé dans l’État membre concerné est, par la suite, vendu en tant que véhicule d’occasion dans ce même État membre, sa valeur marchande comprend le montant résiduel de la taxe d’immatriculation et sera égale à un pourcentage, déterminé par la dépréciation de ce véhicule, de sa valeur initiale (arrêt du 5 octobre 2006, Nádasdi et Németh, C‑290/05 et C‑333/05, Rec. p. I‑10115, point 54).

56 Where a claim for damages is brought before the General Court, which has jurisdiction under Article 256(1) TFEU, it must determine such a claim sitting in a different composition from that which heard the dispute giving rise to the procedure the duration of which is criticised (see, to that effect, judgments in Telefónica and Telefónica de España v Commission, C‑295/12 P, EU:C:2014:2062, paragraph 67; ICF v Commission, C‑467/13 P, EU:C:2014:2274, paragraph 58; and Guardian Industries and Guardian Europe v Commission, C‑580/12 P, EU:C:2014:2363, paragraph 19).

33. However, the Court’s case‑law shows that that article does not prohibit a tax which is payable annually on account of the registration of an undertaking with a chamber of commerce and industry, in so far as the event which gives rise to that tax is not the registration of the company or the legal person which owns an undertaking but the registration of the undertaking itself, the tax is unrelated to the legal form of the entity which owns the undertaking, and it is not therefore linked to formalities to which capital companies may be subject by reason of their legal form (see, to that effect, Case C‑2/94 Denkavit Internationaal and Others [1996] ECR I‑2827, paragraphs 24 to 26).

20 It is settled case-law that it is solely for the national courts before which actions are brought, and which must bear the responsibility for the subsequent judicial decision, to determine in the light of the special features of each case both the need for a preliminary ruling in order to enable them to deliver judgment and the relevance of the questions which they submit to the Court (see, for instance, the judgments in Case C-127/92 Enderby v Frenchay Health Authority [1993] ECR I-5535, paragraph 10, and Joined Cases C-332/92, C-333/92 and C-335/92 Eurico Italia and Others v Ente Nazionale Risi, 3 March 1994, not yet published in the ECR, paragraph 17).

32 According to settled case-law, a mere similarity in the wording of a provision of one of the Treaties establishing the Communities and of an international agreement between the Community and a non-member country is not sufficient to give to the wording of that agreement the same meaning as it has in the Treaties (see Case 270/80 Polydor and RSO [1982] ECR 329, paragraphs 14 to 21; Case 104/81 Kupferberg [1982] ECR 3641, paragraphs 29 to 31; Case C-312/91 Metalsa [1993] ECR I-3751, paragraphs 11 to 20, and Gloszczuk, paragraph 48).

56 That was the context in which the Court held in paragraph 18 of its judgment in Genius Holding that, in order to ensure the application of the principle of neutrality of VAT, it was for the Member States to provide in their internal legal systems for the possibility of correcting any tax improperly invoiced where the issuer of the invoice shows that he acted in good faith.

44. It is thus clear from the case-law that, whatever the mechanism adopted for preventing or mitigating the imposition of a series of charges to tax or economic double taxation, the freedoms of movement guaranteed by the Treaty preclude a Member State from treating foreign-sourced dividends less favourably than nationally-sourced dividends, unless such a difference in treatment concerns situations which are not objectively comparable or is justified by overriding reasons in the public interest (see, to that effect, Case C‑315/02 Lenz [2004] ECR I‑7063, paragraphs 20 to 49; Case C‑319/02 Manninen [2004] ECR I‑7477, paragraphs 20 to 55; and Test Claimants in the FII Group Litigation , paragraph 46).

95 As regards, in particular, the fact that the Commission adopted the 1993 draft summary report without awaiting the report of the conciliation body, it must be observed, first, that the Belgian Government has raised this fact, not as a ground of annulment of the contested decision, but in support of its plea for annulment based on breach of the principles of bona fide cooperation and due care. Second, notwithstanding the Commission's haste in adopting the 1993 draft summary report, the documents before the Court show that in any event the Commission took note of the Belgian authorities' arguments and examined them, even if it did not find them persuasive.

34. It is also necessary to verify that the purchasers of the goods or services benefit from the subsidy granted to the beneficiary. The price payable by the purchaser must be fixed in such a way that it diminishes in proportion to the subsidy granted to the seller or supplier of the goods or services, which therefore constitutes an element in determining the price demanded by the latter. It must also be ascertained whether, objectively, the fact that a subsidy is paid to the seller or supplier allows the latter to sell the goods or supply the services at a price lower than he would have to demand in the absence of subsidy ( Office des produits wallons , paragraph 14).

23 Moreover, the principle of non-discrimination precludes the imposition of any requirement that the linguistic knowledge in question must have been acquired within the national territory . It also implies that the nationals of other Member States should have an opportunity to retake the oral examination, in the event of their having previously failed it, when they again apply for a post of assistant lecturer or lecturer .

9. It is necessary, first of all, to point out that it is settled case-law that the exemptions provided for in Article 13 of the Sixth Directive constitute independent concepts of Community law whose purpose is to avoid divergences in the application of the VAT system as between one Member State and another (see, inter alia, Case C‑349/96 CPP [1999] ECR I‑973, paragraph 15, and Case C-8/01 Taksatorringen [2003] ECR I‑13711, paragraph 37, and the case-law cited).

81. That argument cannot be upheld.

47. The Court takes the view that such an approach is supported by the position of the rules on jurisdiction set out in Articles 13 to 15 of the Brussels Convention over consumer contracts in the scheme of that convention, which give rise to a strict interpretation of those articles which cannot go beyond the cases envisaged by that convention. Thus, the objective underlying those provisions, namely to ensure adequate protection for the consumer as the party deemed to be economically weaker, does not permit a different outcome ( Engler , paragraphs 39 and 41 to 43).

20 IN THE EVENT, HOWEVER, THE NATIONAL COURT CONSIDERED THAT THE AMOUNT OF THE ROYALTIES CHARGED BY SACEM TO DISCOTHEQUES IN FRANCE WAS NOT UNFAIR . IN ITS WRITTEN OBSERVATIONS THE COMMISSION INDICATED THAT IT WAS CARRYING OUT A GENERAL INQUIRY INTO THE ROYALTIES CHARGED BY SACEM TO FRENCH DISCOTHEQUES, COVERING BOTH THE RATE OF THOSE ROYALTIES AND THE BASIS ON WHICH THEY ARE ASSESSED . HOWEVER, THE AMOUNT OF THE ROYALTIES IS NOT ONE OF THE ISSUES REFERRED BY THE NATIONAL COURT TO THIS COURT .

71 Despite the absence of a limitation period for the recovery of VAT in either the Sixth Directive (Case C-85/97 SFI v Belgian State [1998] ECR I-7447, paragraph 25) or in the legislation relating to the Communities' own resources, the fundamental requirement of legal certainty may have the effect of preventing the Commission from indefinitely delaying, in the course of a procedure for failure to fulfil obligations seeking the retrospective payment of own resources, the decision to bring proceedings (see, mutatis mutandis, Case 57/69 ACNA v Commission [1972] ECR 933, paragraph 32).

25 Thus, none of those provisions determines the point in time from which the limitation period for the recovery of VAT begins to run. Nor, moreover, does examination of the Sixth Directive reveal any other provision concerning this question.

21. With regard to determining the precise nature of the benefit at issue in the main proceedings, it is clear from the Court’s case-law that social security benefits must be regarded, irrespective of the characteristics peculiar to different national legal systems, as being of the same kind when their purpose and object as well as the basis on which they are calculated and the conditions for granting them are identical. On the other hand, characteristics which are purely formal must not be considered relevant criteria for the classification of the benefits (see, to that effect, Case 171/82 Valentini [1983] ECR 2157, paragraph 13, and Case C‑406/04 De Cuyper [2006] ECR I‑6947, paragraph 25).

68. However, such instruments of mutual assistance do not lay down an execution condition similar to that of Article 54 CISA and, accordingly, are not capable of fully achieving the objective pursued.

39. Accordingly, Directive 2004/38 establishes a derived right of residence for third-country nationals who are family members of a Union citizen, within the meaning of Article 2(2) of that directive, only where that citizen has exercised his right of freedom of movement by becoming established in a Member State other than the Member State of which he is a national (see, to that effect, Metock and Others , paragraph 73; Case C‑256/11 Dereci and Others [2011] ECR I‑11315, paragraph 56; Iida , paragraph 51; and Joined Cases C‑356/11 and C‑357/11 O. and Others [2012] ECR, paragraph 41).

25. In those circumstances, the Tribunal Català de Contractes del Sector Públic also satisfies the criterion of compulsory jurisdiction.

57. In view of the Court’s settled case-law, the contested legislation constitutes a measure having equivalent effect to quantitative restrictions on imports within the meaning of Article 34 TFEU, in so far as its effect is to hinder access to the Polish market for vehicles with steering equipment on the right, which are lawfully constructed and registered in Member States other than the Republic of Lithuania (see, concerning the origins of that case-law, Case 8/74 Dassonville [1974] ECR 837, paragraph 5; Case 120/78 Rewe Zentral, ‘Cassis de Dijon’ [1979] ECR 649, paragraph 14; and, more recently, Case C‑110/05 Commission v Italy [2009] ECR I‑519, paragraph 58).

23QUE , DANS CES CONDITIONS , PERMETTRE A L ' ETAT MEMBRE DESTINATAIRE D ' UNE DECISION PRISE EN VERTU DE L ' ARTICLE 93 , PARAGRAPHE 2 , ALINEA 1 , DE REMETTRE EN CAUSE LA VALIDITE DE CELLE-CI , A L ' OCCASION DU RECOURS VISE A L ' ALINEA 2 DE CETTE MEME DISPOSITION , NONOBSTANT L ' EXPIRATION DU DELAI PREVU A L ' ARTICLE 173 , ALINEA 3 , DU TRAITE , SERAIT INCONCILIABLE AVEC LES PRINCIPES REGISSANT LES VOIES DE RECOURS INSTITUEES PAR LE TRAITE , ET PORTERAIT ATTEINTE A LA STABILITE DE CE SYSTEME AINSI QU ' AU PRINCIPE DE LA SECURITE JURIDIQUE DONT CELUI-CI S ' INSPIRE ;

38 As regards, more particularly, the second of those conditions, the Court has held that a breach of Community law is sufficiently serious where a Member State, in the exercise of its legislative powers, has manifestly and gravely disregarded the limits on its powers (see Brasserie du Pêcheur and Factortame, paragraph 55; British Telecommunications, paragraph 42; and Dillenkofer and Others, paragraph 25) and that where, at the time when it committed the infringement, the Member State in question had only considerably reduced, or even no, discretion, the mere infringement of Community law may be sufficient to establish the existence of a sufficiently serious breach (see Hedley Lomas, paragraph 28; and Norbrook Laboratories, paragraph 109).

10 SECONDLY , THIS PROVISION FORMS PART OF THE SOCIAL OBJECTIVES OF THE COMMUNITY , WHICH IS NOT MERELY AN ECONOMIC UNION , BUT IS AT THE SAME TIME INTENDED , BY COMMON ACTION , TO ENSURE SOCIAL PROGRESS AND SEEK THE CONSTANT IMPROVEMENT OF THE LIVING AND WORKING CONDITIONS OF THEIR PEOPLES , AS IS EMPHASIZED BY THE PREAMBLE TO THE TREATY .

15. In that regard, the Court has already held that the principle of equal treatment is a general principle of European Union law, enshrined in Articles 20 and 21 of the Charter, which requires that comparable situations must not be treated differently and that different situations must not be treated in the same way unless such treatment is objectively justified (see, inter alia, Case C‑550/07 P Akzo Nobel Chemicals and Akcros Chemicals v Commission and Others [2010] ECR I‑8301, paragraphs 54 and 55 and the case-law cited).

62. Regulation No 17 places the undertaking being investigated under a duty of active cooperation, which means that it must be prepared to make any information relating to the object of the inquiry available to the Commission (Case 374/87 Orkem v Commission [1989] ECR 3283, paragraph 27).

25. Thus, Article 82 EC prohibits a dominant undertaking from, among other things, adopting pricing practices that have an exclusionary effect on competitors considered to be as efficient as it is itself and strengthening its dominant position by using methods other than those that are part of competition on the merits. Accordingly, in that light, not all competition by means of price may be regarded as legitimate (see, to that effect, AKZO v Commission , paragraphs 70 and 72; France Télécom v Commission , paragraph 106; and Deutsche Telekom v Commission , paragraph 177).

17 It is for the national court to decide whether the employment relationship of the applicant in the main proceedings has a sufficiently close connection with the territory of the Netherlands, taking into account in particular the following circumstances apparent from the case-file and from the written and oral observations submitted to the Court : the applicant works on board a vessel registered in the Netherlands in the employ of a shipping company incorporated under the law of the Netherlands and established in that State; he was hired in the Netherlands and the employment relationship between him and his employer is subject to Netherlands law; he is insured under the social security system of the Netherlands and pays income tax in the Netherlands .

44. As paragraphs 62 to 68 of the judgment in Case C‑275/06 Promusicae [2008] ECR I‑271 make clear, the protection of the fundamental right to property, which includes the rights linked to intellectual property, must be balanced against the protection of other fundamental rights.

34 Such an objective may be a reason of overriding public interest capable of justifying a restriction on fundamental freedoms, such as that at issue in the main proceedings.

32. It follows that transactions such as those at issue in the main proceedings must be regarded as ‘economic activity’ within the meaning of Article 9(1) of the VAT Directive if they are effected for the purpose of obtaining income therefrom on a continuing basis (see, by analogy, Case C-230/94 Enkler [1996] ECR I-4517, paragraph 22).

67 Asked by the High Court of Justice whether the Treaty provisions on freedom of establishment conferred on a company the right to transfer its centre of management to another Member State, the Court observed, at paragraph 19 of Daily Mail and General Trust, that a company, which is a creature of national law, exists only by virtue of the national legislation which determines its incorporation and functioning.

46. In those circumstances, the account taken by the Commission of the wide variety of operations covered by the concept of assembly throughout the industrial sector concerned justified reliance being placed on the criterion of added value ( Thomson and Vestel , paragraph 37).

20 IT MUST BE OBSERVED THAT PART OF THE DELAYS COMPLAINED OF , THAT IS TO SAY THE GRADUAL AND DECELERATING RELEASE OF THE QUANTITIES HELD UP AT THE FRONTIER AS A RESULT OF THE ARRANGEMENT ARRIVED AT BY THE FRENCH AND ITALIAN GOVERNMENTS ON 13 OCTOBER 1981 , THE RESUMPTION OF THE CONTESTED PRACTICES AT THE BEGINNING OF FEBRUARY AND THE CONTINUATION OF THEM UNTIL MARCH 1982 , TOOK PLACE AFTER THE REASONED OPINIONS WERE GIVEN . NEVERTHELESS IT IS COMMON GROUND THAT THESE ARE PRACTICES WHICH HAD ALREADY BEEN CONDEMNED IN THE REASONED OPINIONS AND WHICH WERE CONTINUED SUBSEQUENTLY OR ARE PRACTICES WHICH OCCURRED AFTER THE OPINIONS HAD BEEN GIVEN BUT WERE OF THE SAME KIND AS THOSE TO WHICH THE OPINIONS REFERRED AND CONSTITUTED THE SAME CONDUCT . 3 . THE REFUSAL TO ACCEPT THE ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTS

74. The prohibition on measures having an effect equivalent to restrictions set out in Article 28 EC covers all commercial rules enacted by the Member States which are capable of hindering, directly or indirectly, actually or potentially, intra-Community trade (see, in particular, Case 8/74 Dassonville [1974] ECR 837, paragraph 5; Case C-192/01 Commission v Denmark [2003] ECR I-9693, paragraph 39; and Case C‑24/00 Commission v France [2004] ECR I-1277, paragraph 22).

50. Before an operator can be active in the betting and gaming sector in Italy, it must obtain a licence. Under the licensing system in use, the number of operators is limited. So far as concerns the taking of bets, the number of licences for the management of sports bets on competitive events not involving horses is limited to 1 000, as is the number of licences for the acceptance of bets on competitive horse events.

22. The distinctive character of the sign must be assessed in concreto by reference to, first, the goods or services in question and, second, the perception of the relevant public, namely the average consumer of the category of goods or services in question, who is reasonably well informed and reasonably observant and circumspect (see, in particular, Linde and Others , C‑53/01 to C‑55/01, EU:C:2003:206, paragraph 41; Koninklijke KPN Nederland , C‑363/99, EU:C:2004:86, paragraph 34; and OHIM v BORCO-Marken-Import Matthiesen , EU:C:2010:508, paragraphs 32 and 35).

90. In the light of the foregoing, as observed by the Advocate General at point 12 of his Opinion, the plea of inadmissibility raised by the Commission, the ECTA, France Telecom and Ausbanc Consumo must be upheld and the second ground of appeal rejected in its entirety as inadmissible. The third ground of appeal, alleging errors of law in the assessment of the dominant position

Buzzi Unicem soutient, en substance, que le Tribunal a commis une erreur de droit en estimant que le moyen tiré du défaut de motivation de la décision litigieuse n’était pas fondé et devait être rejeté. Il s’agit d’une question de droit soumise au contrôle de la Cour dans le cadre d’un pourvoi (voir arrêt Commission/Salzgitter, C‑408/04 P, EU:C:2008:236, point 55 et jurisprudence citée). Le premier moyen est, partant, recevable.

55. That is a question of law subject to review by the Court of Justice on an appeal (C‑166/95 P Commission v Daffix [1997] ECR I‑983).

34. Concerning the information that must be provided to the Court in the context of a reference for a preliminary ruling, it should be noted that that information does not serve only to enable the Court to provide answers which will be of use to the national court; it must also enable the Governments of the Member States, and other interested parties, to submit observations in accordance with Article 23 of the Statute of the Court of Justice. For those purposes, according to settled case-law, it is firstly necessary that the national court should define the factual and legislative context of the questions it is asking or, at the very least, explain the factual circumstances on which those questions are based. Secondly, the referring court must set out the precise reasons why it was unsure as to the interpretation of Community law and why it considered it necessary to refer questions to the Court for a preliminary ruling. In consequence, it is essential that the referring court provide at the very least some explanation of the reasons for the choice of the Community provisions which it requires to be interpreted and of the link it establishes between those provisions and the national legislation applicable to the dispute in the main proceedings (see to that effect, inter alia, Joined Cases C‑320/90 to C‑322/90 Telemarsicabruzzo and Others [1993] ECR I‑393, paragraph 6; Joined Cases C‑453/03, C‑11/04, C‑12/04 and C‑194/04 ABNA and Others [2005] ECR I‑10423, paragraphs 45 to 47; and Case C‑506/04 Wilson [2006] ECR I‑0000, paragraphs 38 and 39).

26 According to established case-law, it is necessary to determine whether the increased reductions under the Maribel bis/ter scheme entail advantages accruing exclusively to certain undertakings or certain sectors and do not therefore fulfil the condition of specificity which constitutes one of the characteristics of the concept of State aid namely the selective character of the measures in question (see, to this effect, the judgment in France v Commission, cited above, paragraph 24, and Ecotrade, cited above, paragraph 40).

65. In the procedural area, the Court of Justice has expressly recognised the general principle of Community law that everyone is entitled to a fair legal process (Case C-185/95 P Baustahlgewebe v Commission [1998] ECR I-8417, paragraphs 20 and 21; Joined Cases C-174/98 P and C-189/98 P Netherlands and Van der Wal v Commission [2000] ECR I-1, paragraph 17; and Krombach , paragraph 26). That principle is inspired by the fundamental rights which form an integral part of the general principles of Community law which the Court of Justice enforces, drawing inspiration from the constitutional traditions common to the Member States and from the guidelines supplied, in particular, by the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, signed in Rome on 4 November 1950.

35 Consequently, it must be held that, by precluding by regulation or administrative practice on the grounds of their nationality employed or self-employed workers from other Member States and the members of their families from being attributed large-family status for the purpose of the award of special benefits for such families and from being awarded family allowances, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 48 and 52 of the EC Treaty, Article 7 of Regulation No 1612/68, Article 7 of Regulation No 1251/70, Article 7 of Directive 75/34 and Article 3 of Regulation No 1408/71.

47. The importance of protecting privacy is highlighted in recitals 2 and 10 in the preamble to the Directive and emphasised in the case-law of the Court (see, to that effect, Österreichischer Rundfunk and Others , paragraph 70; Lindqvist , paragraphs 97 and 99; Case C‑275/06 Promusicae [2008] ECR I‑271, paragraph 63; and Case C‑73/07 Satakunnan Markkinapörssi and Satamedia [2008] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 52).

59. In those circumstances, the Community Court must restrict itself to considering whether the exercise of that discretion is vitiated by manifest error or misuse of powers and whether the Community institutions clearly exceeded the bounds of their discretion (see Antillean Rice Mills and Others v Commission , cited above, paragraph 48, Case C-110/97 Netherlands v Council , cited above, paragraph 62, and Case C-301/97 Netherlands v Council , cited above, paragraph 74).

18 In that regard, it must be stated that neither the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union nor the Court’s Rules of Procedure make provision for the parties to submit observations in response to the Advocate General’s Opinion (order of 4 February 2000, Emesa Sugar, C‑17/98, EU:C:2000:69, paragraph 2, and judgment of 6 September 2012, Döhler Neuenkirchen, C‑262/10, EU:C:2012:559, paragraph 29).

35 Consequently, it must be held that, by precluding by regulation or administrative practice on the grounds of their nationality employed or self-employed workers from other Member States and the members of their families from being attributed large-family status for the purpose of the award of special benefits for such families and from being awarded family allowances, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 48 and 52 of the EC Treaty, Article 7 of Regulation No 1612/68, Article 7 of Regulation No 1251/70, Article 7 of Directive 75/34 and Article 3 of Regulation No 1408/71.

18 In regard to such circumstances, the Court pointed out at paragraph 43 of the Dorsch Consult judgment, cited above, that Member States' obligation arising from a directive to achieve the result envisaged by the directive and their duty under Article 5 of the EC Treaty to take all appropriate measures, whether general or particular, to ensure fulfilment of that obligation, is binding on all the authorities of Member States, including, for matters within their jurisdiction, the courts. It follows that, when applying national law, whether adopted before or after the directive, the national court called upon to interpret that law must do so, as far as possible, in the light of the wording and the purpose of the directive so as to achieve the result which it has in view and thereby comply with the third paragraph of Article 189 of the EC Treaty (see Case C-106/89 Marleasing [1990] ECR I-4135, paragraph 8; Case C-334/92 Wagner Miret [1993] ECR I-6911, paragraph 20; and Case C-91/92 Faccini Dori [1994] ECR I-3325, paragraph 26).

43. Une législation nationale, telle que celle en cause au principal, qui a pour effet de réduire la période pendant laquelle peuvent être introduits des recours en vue de demander la restitution de l’indu, de six ans à compter de la découverte de l’erreur à l’origine du paiement de l’impôt indu à six ans à compter du jour du paiement de celui-ci, en prévoyant qu’un tel effet s’applique immédiatement à toutes les demandes introduites après la date d’adoption de cette législation ainsi qu’aux demandes introduites entre cette dernière date et une date antérieure, correspondant en l’occurrence à la date à laquelle la proposition d’adoption de cette législation a été annoncée, qui constitue la date d’entrée en vigueur de ladite législation, ne satisfait pas à l’exigence d’un régime transitoire. Une telle législation rend impossible en pratique l’exercice d’un droit au remboursement d’impôts indûment versés dont les contribuables disposaient précédemment. Il s’ensuit qu’une législation nationale telle que celle en cause au principal doit être considérée comme étant incompatible avec le principe d’effectivité. Sur les principes de sécurité juridique et de protection de la confiance légitime

28 In that regard, it must be recalled that, in accordance with settled case-law, Article 267 TFEU requires the referring court to give full effect to the interpretation of EU law provided by the Court (see, to that effect, judgment of 5 April 2016, PFE, C‑689/13, EU:C:2016:199, paragraphs 38 to 40 and the case-law cited).

46. La Cour a déjà considéré qu’«un emploi régulier» suppose une situation stable et non précaire sur le marché du travail dudit État membre et implique, à ce titre, un droit de séjour non contesté (arrêt du 8 novembre 2012, Gülbahce, C‑268/11, point 39 et jurisprudence citée).

46. Depending on the legal remedies provided for under domestic law, a national court may thus be seised of an application for interim relief such as the suspension of the measures at issue, in order to safeguard the interests of individuals and, in particular, to protect parties affected by the distortion of competition caused by the grant of the unlawful aid (see SFEI and Others , paragraph 52).

24 THE AGREEMENT DID, IN FACT, HAVE THE BENEFICIAL EFFECT OF CONCENTRATING THE SUPPLY OF AND DEMAND FOR FRUIT IMPORTED FROM THIRD COUNTRIES IN THE ROTTERDAM IMPORT AUCTIONS AND THUS OF ENSURING THE STABILITY OF THE MARKET, THE AVAILABILITY OF SUPPLIES AND THEIR REACHING CONSUMERS AT REASONABLE PRICES .

74. In accordance with settled case-law, a national court which is called upon, within the exercise of its jurisdiction, to apply provisions of European Union law is under a duty to give full effect to those provisions, if necessary refusing of its own motion to apply any conflicting provision of national legislation (see, inter alia, Simmenthal , paragraphs 21 to 24, and Case C-119/05 Lucchini [2007] ECR I-6199, paragraph 61).

67. It is not easy to establish a link, even an indirect link, between the absence of progress towards democratisation and the continuing violation of human rights in Myanmar, which, as is apparent from recital 1 in the preamble to the contested regulation, is one of the reasons which led to the adoption of the regulation, and the conduct of the family members of those in charge of businesses, whi ch, in itself, has not been criticised.

26 Consequently, where national law cannot be interpreted consistently with Directive 2004/18, the party adversely affected by the incompatibility of national law with EU law may rely upon the case-law deriving from the judgment of 19 November 1991 in Francovich and Others (C‑6/90 and C‑9/90, EU:C:1991:428) in order to obtain, if appropriate, compensation for any damage suffered (see, to that effect, judgment of 26 March 2015 in Fenoll, C‑316/13, EU:C:2015:200, paragraph 48 and the case-law cited).

En effet, le Tribunal a considéré, à ce point, d’une part, que le terme « logistique », visé par les actes litigieux, ne se limitait pas à des activités de transport de marchandises ou de personnes, mais était communément compris comme une notion transversale englobant toute activité qui se rapporte à la mise en œuvre d’une opération ou d’un processus complexe et pouvant comprendre différents types d’opérations comme la fourniture de matières premières, la gestion de matériaux, la livraison de produits ou encore la manutention. Il a défini, d’autre part, l’appui logistique comme « toute activité qui, même si elle n’a, en tant que telle, aucun lien direct ou indirect avec la prolifération nucléaire, est cependant susceptible, par son importance quantitative et qualitative, de la favoriser en permettant au gouvernement de répondre à des besoins logistiques déterminés, comme en l’espèce dans le secteur du pétrole et du gaz, qui génère des revenus substantiels pour ledit gouvernement ».

18. According to the Court’s case-law, the obligation laid down in the second paragraph of Article 296 TFEU to state reasons is an essential procedural requirement that must be distinguished from the question whether the reasoning is well founded, which goes to the substantive legality of the measure at issue (see judgments in Elf Aquitaine v Commission , C‑521/09 P, EU:C:2011:620, paragraph 146 and the case-law cited, and Gascogne Sack Deutschland v Commission , C‑40/12 P, EU:C:2013:768, paragraph 46).

32. It follows from the foregoing that, contrary to the line of argument put forward by the applicants in the main proceedings, the payment of compensation by such a national body, as provided for under the First and Second Directives, cannot be regarded as the implementation of a guarantee scheme in respect of insurance against civil liability relating to the use of motor vehicles; rather, it is intended to take effect only in specific, clearly identified, sets of circumstances.

34 It should be observed at the outset that Article 226 EC enables the Commission to institute proceedings for failure to fulfil obligations each time it forms the view that a Member State has failed to fulfil an obligation under Community law, without its being required to draw distinctions based on the nature or gravity of the infringement, since such proceedings are based on the objective finding that a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations under the Treaty or secondary legislation (see Case 301/81 Commission v Belgium [1983] ECR 467, paragraph 8; Case C-209/88 Commission v Italy [1990] ECR I-4313, paragraph 13; Case C-71/97 Commission v Spain [1998] ECR I-5991, paragraph 14; and Case C-333/99 Commission v France [2001] ECR I-1025, paragraphs 32 and 33).

30. La Cour a toutefois précisé que, pour que des impôts, droits, prélèvements et taxes puissent relever de l’assiette de la TVA alors même qu’ils ne représentent pas de valeur ajoutée et qu’ils ne constituent pas la contrepartie économique de la livraison du bien, ils doivent présenter un lien direct avec cette livraison (arrêt De Danske Bilimportører, précité, point 17 et jurisprudence citée).

28. In those circumstances, only a mark which departs significantly from the norm or customs of the sector and thereby fulfils its essential function of indicating origin is not devoid of any distinctive character for the purposes of Article 7(1)(b) of Regulation No 40/94 (see, in particular, Henkel v OHIM , paragraph 39, Mag Instrument v OHIM , paragraph 31, and Deutsche SiSi-Werke v OHIM , paragraph 31).

16 That question must be answered in the negative.

15 The Italian Government has also contended that, even if electricity does constitute goods within the meaning of the Treaty, it is clear from the judgments in Case C-275/92 H.M. Customs and Excise v Schindler [1994] ECR I-1039 and Case C-260/89 ERT v DEP [1991] ECR I-2925 that the import and export of goods for the sole purpose of providing services form part of the services themselves and accordingly escape the rules governing the free movement of goods.

58 As regards the question whether the inspections carried out by the Commission were sufficiently representative, it must be observed that, as the Commission has argued without being contradicted by the Greek Government, those inspections concerned, in relation to the peaches and nectarines sector in Greece, all the producers' organisations having their seat in the nomoi of Pella and Imathia, which account for 95% of production of peaches and nectarines on Greek territory and for 93.5% of the compensatory payments made in that respect. In the citrus fruits sector, the inspections concerned the nomoi of Argolida, Arta and Lefkada, the production of which gave rise to 74% of the compensatory payments. Having regard to those figures, the representative nature of the inspections made by the Commission and the extent of the irregularities cannot reasonably be cast in doubt (see Greece v Commission, cited above, paragraph 52).

39. The possible restrictions on the benefit of the exemptions provided for by Article 13A of the Sixth Directive may be imposed only in the context of the application of paragraph 2 of that provision (see Hoffmann , paragraph 39). Thus, when a Member State accords an exemption for certain services closely linked to sport or physical education supplied by non-profit-making organisations, it may not make that exemption subject to conditions other than those laid down in Article 13A(2) of the Sixth Directive (see Case C‑124/96 Commission v Spain [1998] ECR I‑2501, paragraph 18). Since that provision does not lay down restrictions as regards recipients of the services in question, the Member States have no power to exclude a certain group of recipients of those services from the benefit of the exemption in question.

31 The Court does not need to examine the form of order sought against the Italian Republic for failing to notify the Commission of the measures implementing the decision since the Italian Republic did not in fact implement the decision within the prescribed period.

122. The General Court first observed, in paragraph 169 of the judgment under appeal, that, according to settled case-law, the removal of unlawful State aid by means of recovery is the logical consequence of a finding that that aid is unlawful. The aim of obliging the Member State concerned to abolish aid found by the Commission to be incompatible with the common market is to restore the previous situation, causing the recipient to forfeit the advantage which it had enjoyed over its competitors (see Case C‑310/99 Italy v Commission [2002] ECR I‑2289, paragraph 99, and Case C‑277/00 Germany v Commission [2004] ECR I‑3925, paragraph 75 and the case-law cited).

60. It should be noted that the Regulation provides for a certain number of mandatory rules of coordination intended to ensure, as expressed in recital 12 in the preamble thereto, the need for unity in the Community. In that system, the main proceedings have a dominant role in relation to the secondary proceedings, as stated in recital 20 in the preamble to the Regulation.

24 This reasoning applies both to agreements conferring jurisdiction on the courts of a Member State and to those in favour of the courts of a third country, since the tacit prorogation of jurisdiction by virtue of the first sentence of Article 24 of Regulation No 44/2001 is based on a deliberate choice made by the parties to the dispute regarding jurisdiction (see judgment in A, C‑112/13, EU:C:2014:2195, paragraph 54). Accordingly, as is apparent from the previous paragraph of this judgment, the question on the applicability of Article 23 of that regulation is irrelevant.

19 This consequence results from the express will of the Community legislature. While the Commission's original proposal for the Directive provided that its provisions would apply `to rights which have not expired on or before 31 December 1994', the European Parliament amended that proposal by introducing new wording which was, in essence, taken up in the final version of the Directive.

52. Furthermore, the derogations provided for in Articles 296 EC and 297 EC must, in accordance with settled case-law in respect of derogations from fundamental freedoms (see, inter alia, Case C‑503/03 Commission v Spain [2006] ECR I‑1097, paragraph 45; Case C‑490/04 Commission v Germany [2007] ECR I‑6095, paragraph 86; and Case C‑141/07 Commission v Germany [2008] ECR I‑6935, paragraph 50), be interpreted strictly.

91. The Directive does not concern the choice of selection and recruitment procedures for filling positions and it cannot be relied on as the basis for a right actually to be recruited. The Directive does no more than require the recognition of qualifications obtained in one Member State in order to allow their holder to apply for a job in another Member State, in accordance with the selection and recruitment procedures which govern access to regulated professions in that Member State.

33. However, although Member States retain the power to organise the conditions of affiliation to their social security schemes, they must none the less, when exercising that power, comply with European Union law. In particular, those conditions may not have the effect of excluding from the scope of the legislation at issue persons to whom that legislation applies pursuant to Regulation No 1408/71 (see, to that effect, Case C-2/89 Kits van Heijningen [1990] ECR I-1755, paragraph 20, and Salemink , paragraphs 39 and 40).

38 When an undertaking holding a dominant position imposes scales of fees for its services which are appreciably higher than those charged in other Member States and where a comparison of the fee levels has been made on a consistent basis, that difference must be regarded as indicative of an abuse of a dominant position . In such a case it is for the undertaking in question to justify the difference by reference to objective dissimilarities between the situation in the Member State concerned and the situation prevailing in all the other Member States .

24 The Court has held that, for the purposes of determining whether the transfer of an undertaking subject to an administrative or judicial procedure falls within the scope of the directive, the determining factor to be taken into consideration is the purpose of the procedure in question (judgment in D' Urso, paragraph 26).

13 In the grounds of the judgments cited above, the Court found, essentially, that the application to the producers covered by Article 3a of a reduction rate of 40% which, far from corresponding to a value that was representative of the rates applicable to the producers who had delivered milk during the reference year adopted by the Member State concerned, was more than double the highest total of such rates, was to be regarded as a restriction which specifically affected the first-mentioned category of producers by the very reason of their undertaking as to non-marketing or conversion. It followed that the contested 60% rule frustrated the legitimate expectations which the producers concerned were entitled to entertain as to the limited nature of their undertakings and therefore had to be declared invalid for breach of the principle of the protection of legitimate expectations (Spagl, paragraphs 24 and 29; Pastaetter, paragraphs 15 and 20).

32 It is settled case-law that persons other than those to whom a decision is addressed may claim to be individually concerned only if the decision affects them by reason of certain attributes peculiar to them or by reason of circumstances in which they are differentiated from all other persons and if, by virtue of those factors, it distinguishes them individually in the same way as the person addressed (Case 25/62 Plaumann v Commission [1963] ECR 197, Case C-321/95 P Greenpeace Council and Others v Commission [1998] ECR I-1651, paragraphs 7 and 28).

14 The principle that a reference quantity is attached to the land follows from Article 2 of Regulation No 857/84 read together with Article 12(c) and (d) of that regulation.

20. The same is true of those importers of the product concerned whose resale prices were taken into account for the construction of export prices and who are consequently concerned by the findings relating to the existence of dumping (see judgments in Nashua Corporation and Others v Commission and Council , C‑133/87 and C‑150/87, EU:C:1990:115, paragraph 15; Gestetner Holdings v Council and Commission , C‑156/87, EU:C:1990:116, paragraph 18; in addition, Valimar , C‑374/12, EU:C:2014:2231, paragraph 31).

49. En effet, la compétence de la Cour dans le cadre d’un pourvoi est limitée à l’appréciation de la solution légale qui a été donnée aux moyens débattus devant les premiers juges (voir arrêt Commission/Brazzelli Lualdi e.a., précité, point 59). Partant, la Cour est uniquement compétente, dans le cadre d’une telle procédure, pour examiner si l’argumentation contenue dans le pourvoi identifie une erreur de droit dont serait entaché l’arrêt attaqué (voir, en ce sens, arrêts du 4 juillet 2000, Bergaderm et Goupil/Commission, C‑352/98 P, Rec. p. I‑5291, point 35, ainsi que du 30 septembre 2003, Eurocoton e.a./Conseil, C‑76/01 P, Rec. p. I‑10091, point 47).

40 As the General Court recalled in paragraph 43 of the judgment under appeal, in accordance with settled case-law classification as ‘State aid’ requires all the following conditions to be fulfilled. First, there must be an intervention by the State or through State resources. Second, the intervention must be liable to affect trade between Member States. Third, it must confer a selective advantage on the recipient. Fourth, it must distort or threaten to distort competition (see, inter alia, judgment of 16 July 2015, BVVG, C‑39/14, EU:C:2015:470, paragraph 24).

42. Enfin, s’agissant de l’argument de la République italienne tiré de l’impossibilité de récupérer les aides accordées à Sardegna Flotta Sarda en raison de l’état de cessation d’activité de cette dernière, il est de jurisprudence constante que le fait que des entreprises bénéficiaires sont en difficulté ou en faillite n’affecte pas l’obligation de récupération de l’aide, l’État membre étant tenu, selon le cas, de provoquer la liquidation de la société (voir, notamment, arrêts du 15 janvier 1986, Commission/Belgique, 52/84, Rec. p. 89, point 14, ainsi que du 8 mai 2003, Italie et SIM 2 Multimedia/Commission, C‑328/99 et C-399/00, Rec. p. I-4035, point 69), de faire inscrire sa créance au passif de l’entreprise (voir, notamment, arrêts du 21 mars 1990, Belgique/Commission, dit «Tubemeuse», C-142/87, Rec. p. I‑959, points 61 à 64; Italie et SIM 2 Multimedia/Commission, précité, point 85, ainsi que du 14 avril 2011, Commission/Pologne, C‑331/09, Rec. p. I-2933, point 60) ou de prendre toute autre mesure permettant le remboursement de l’aide (arrêt du 6 décembre 2007, Commission/Italie, C-280/05, point 28).

46. As regards the obligation to state reasons, it is settled case-law that the Court of First Instance is not thereby required to provide an account that follows exhaustively and point by point all the reasoning articulated by the parties to the case. The reasoning may therefore be implicit on condition that it enables the persons concerned to know why the measures in question were taken and provides the competent court with sufficient material for it to exercise its power of review (see, in particular, Case C-105/04 P Nederlandse Federatieve Vereniging voor de Groothandel op Electrotechnisch Gebied v Commission [2006] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 72).

16 A national rule that, where men and women who are candidates for the same promotion are equally qualified, women are automatically to be given priority in sectors where they are under-represented, involves discrimination on grounds of sex.

43. The margin of appreciation left for the Member States by the Framework Agreement is indeed not unlimited, because it cannot in any event go so far as to compromise the objective or the practical effect of the Framework Agreement ( Adeneler and Others , paragraph 82, and Angelidaki and Others , paragraph 155).

47. As regards the principle of equivalence, it does not appear from the file, nor has it been argued before the Court, that the limitation period provided for in Article 19(1) of the DPR No 633/72 does not comply with that principle.

22 It must be pointed out in that regard that, in its judgment of 25 May 1971 in Case 80/70 Defrenne v Belgium (( 1971 )) ECR 445, paragraphs 7 and 8, the Court stated that consideration in the nature of social security benefits is not in principle alien to the concept of pay . However, the Court pointed out that this concept, as defined in Article 119, cannot encompass social security schemes or benefits, in particular retirement pensions, directly governed by legislation without any element of agreement within the undertaking or the occupational branch concerned, which are compulsorily applicable to general categories of workers .

46. A product is also ‘presented for treating or preventing disease’ whenever any averagely well-informed consumer gains the impression, which, provided it is definite, may even result from implication, that the product in question should, having regard to its presentation, have the properties in question (see, to that effect, van Bennekom , paragraph 18, and Monteil and Samanni , paragraph 23).

62. Since the case in the main proceedings falls within the scope of Article 39 EC, it is not necessary to rule on the interpretation of Articl e 18 EC (see, to that effect, Oteiza Olazabal , paragraph 26, and Alevizos, paragraph 80), and there is, therefore, no need to answer the fourth question. Costs

15 It is clear from the order for reference that Julius Fillibeck Söhne provides transport for its employees from their homes to their workplace when they are more than a certain distance apart and that the employees do not make any payment, nor is any sum deducted from their wages in respect of that service.

36. It is admittedly true that the Court has also held that, where the European Union intends to implement a particular obligation assumed under the agreements concluded in the context of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) or where the European Union legal measure refers expressly to specific provisions of those agreements, it is for the Court, when appropriate, to review the legality of the Union measure at issue in the light of the WTO rules (see, to that effect, the judgments in Fediol v Commission , 70/87, EU:C:1989:254, paragraphs 19 to 22, and Nakajima v Council , C‑69/89, EU:C:1991:186, paragraphs 29 to 32; see, also, the judgment in LVP , C‑306/13, EU:C:2014:2465, paragraph 47 and case-law cited).

50. The adjustment mechanism provided for in those articles is an integral part of the VAT deduction scheme established by Directive 2006/112. It is intended to enhance the precision of deductions so as to ensure the neutrality of VAT, with the result that transactions effected at an earlier stage continue to give rise to the right to deduct only in so far as they are used to make supplies subject to VAT. That mechanism thus aims to establish a close and direct relationship between the right to deduct input VAT paid and the use of the goods or services concerned for taxable output transactions ( TETS Haskovo , paragraphs 30 and 31).

11. According to settled case-law of the Court, partial annulment of an EU act is possible only if the elements the annulment of which is sought may be severed from the remainder of the act (see, inter alia, judgment in Commission v Council , C‑29/99, EU:C:2002:734, paragraph 45, and judgment in Commission v Parliament and Council , C‑427/12, EU:C:2014:170, paragraph 16).

96. In accordance with the Cour de cassation’s own findings, the situation covered in the questions referred is that of the display of advertising links following the entry by internet users of a search term corresponding to the trade mark selected as a keyword. It is also common ground, in these cases, that those advertising links are displayed beside or above the list of the natural results of the search. Finally, it is not in dispute that the order in which the natural results are set out results from the relevance of the respective sites to the search term entered by the internet user and that the search engine operator does not claim any remuneration for displaying those results.

48. Accordingly, it is not contrary to European Union law to require an operator to act in good faith and to take every step which could reasonably be asked of it to satisfy itself that the transaction which it is carrying out does not result in its participation in tax fraud ( Teleos and Others , paragraph 65, and Mahagében and Dávid , paragraph 54).

58. Il convient de rappeler, à cet égard, que la protection de l’environnement constitue l’un des objectifs essentiels de la Communauté (voir arrêts du 7 février 1985, ADBHU, 240/83, Rec. p. 531, point 13; du 20 septembre 1988, Commission/Danemark, 302/86, Rec. p. 4607, point 8; du 2 avril 1998, Outokumpu, C‑213/96, Rec. p. I‑1777, point 32, et du 13 septembre 2005, Commission/Conseil, C‑176/03, Rec. p. I‑7879, point 41). En ce sens, l’article 2 CE énonce que la Communauté a notamment pour mission de promouvoir un «niveau élevé de protection et d’amélioration de la qualité de l’environnement» et, à cette fin, l’article 3, paragraphe 1, sous l), CE prévoit la mise en place d’une «politique dans le domaine de l’environnement».

72 Measures which restrict a fundamental freedom may be justified on public policy grounds only if they are necessary for the protection of the interests which they are intended to secure and only in so far as those objectives cannot be attained by less restrictive measures (see judgments of 14 October 2004 in Omega, C‑36/02, EU:C:2004:614, paragraph 36; of 10 July 2008 in Jipa, C‑33/07, EU:C:2008:396, paragraph 29; and of 22 December 2010 in Sayn-Wittgenstein, C‑208/09, EU:C:2010:806, paragraph 90).

23. Toutefois, le pouvoir des États membres dans l’aménagement de nouvelles taxes n’est pas illimité. Il est, en effet, de jurisprudence constante que l’interdiction édictée à l’article 110 TFUE doit s’appliquer chaque fois qu’une imposition fiscale est de nature à décourager l’importation de biens originaires d’autres États membres au profit de produits nationaux (arrêt Tatu, précité, point 52 et jurisprudence citée).

24 More recently, the Court held in Case C-472/93 Spano and Others v Fiat Geotech and Fiat Hitachi [1995] ECR I-4321 that the Directive applied to the transfer of an undertaking declared to be in critical difficulties pursuant to Italian Law No 675 of 12 August 1977. It pointed out in particular that the purpose of a declaration that an undertaking was in critical difficulties was to enable the undertaking to retrieve its economic and financial situation and above all to preserve jobs, that the procedure in question was designed to promote the continuation of its business with a view to its subsequent recovery and that, by contrast with insolvency proceedings, it did not involve any judicial supervision or any measure whereby the assets of the undertaking were put under administration and did not provide for any suspension of payments (paragraphs 26, 28 and 29).

51. As regards the scope of the appeal provided for in Article 19(2) of Regulation No 343/2003, that regulation must be construed not only in the light of the wording of its provisions, but also in the light of its general scheme, its objectives and its context, in particular its evolution in connection with the system of which it forms part.

14 In deciding on the merits of the application it should be borne in mind that the objective of the Community regulations governing the co-responsibility levy is to limit the structural surpluses on the cereals market and that that objective provides justification for imposing the levy only on the processing of cereals placed on the market, since the quantities of cereals remaining in a closed circuit do not contribute to the creation of surpluses (see Case 300/86, cited above, paragraph 11, and Case C-203/89 Van Landschoot v Mera [1990] ECR I-3525, paragraph 22).

88. Those various factors relating to the consumption of feta in the Member States tend to indicate that the name ‘feta’ is not generic in nature.

116 Accordingly, where aid which a Member State wishes to authorise under a code is not notified during the period laid down by it for such notification, the Commission can no longer give a decision on the compatibility of that aid under that code (see the judgments in Case 214/83 Germany v Commission, cited above, paragraphs 40 to 47, and Case C-210/98 P Salzgitter v Commission [2000] ECR I-5843, paragraphs 49 to 55). The fact that the Commission or its services were able, where appropriate, to take a different position in certain cases is not such as to call in question that conclusion.

24. Different treatment of resident and non-resident taxpayers cannot therefore in itself be categorised as discrimination within the meaning of the EC Treaty (see, to that effect, Wielockx , paragraph 19).

44 Mr Henkel and the French Government have, however, submitted that Article 5(3) of the Brussels Convention refers to the place where the harmful event occurred and therefore presupposes, according to its actual terms, the existence of damage. They argue that the same conclusion is dictated by the Court's interpretation of that provision, according to which the expression `place where the harmful event occurred' must be understood as being intended to cover both the place where the damage occurred and the place of the event giving rise to that damage, so that the defendant may be sued, at the option of the plaintiff, in the courts for either of those places (see, in particular, Mines de Potasse d'Alsace, cited above, paragraphs 24 and 25; Case C-220/88 Dumez France and Tracoba [1990] ECR I-49, paragraph 10; Case C-68/93 Shevill and Others [1995] ECR I-415, paragraph 20, and Case C-364/93 Marinari [1995] ECR I-2719, paragraph 11). In their submission, it follows that Article 5(3) of the Brussels Convention cannot be applied to purely preventive actions which are brought before any actual damage has occurred and are intended to prevent the occurrence of a future harmful event.

19 Although direct taxation is a matter for the Member States, they must nevertheless exercise their direct taxation powers consistently with Community law (see Case C-279/93 Schumacker [1995] ECR I-225, paragraph 21; Case C-80/94 Wielockx [1995] ECR I-2493, paragraph 16; Case C-107/94 Asscher [1996] ECR I-3089, paragraph 36; and Case C-250/95 Futura Participations and Singer [1997] ECR I-2471, paragraph 19).

17 According to case-law that is well established, that obligation to refer is based on cooperation, with a view to ensuring the proper application and uniform interpretation of Community law in all the Member States, between national courts, in their capacity as courts responsible for the application of Community law, and the Court of Justice (see, in particular, Case 283/81 CILFIT and Lanificio di Gavardo v Italian Ministry of Health [1982] ECR 3415, paragraph 7; Parfums Christian Dior, cited above, paragraph 25), and it is particularly designed to prevent a body of national case-law that is not in accordance with the rules of Community law from being established in any Member State (see, in particular, Case 107/76 Hoffman-La Roche v Centrafarm [1977] ECR 957, paragraph 5, and Joined Cases 35/82 and 36/82 Morson and Jhanjan v Netherlands State [1982] ECR 3723, paragraph 8).

8 AS THE COURT HAS ALREADY HELD IN ITS JUDGMENT OF 24 MAY 1977 IN CASE 107/76 HOFFMANN-LA ROCHE ( 1977 ) ECR 957 , THE PURPOSE OF ARTICLE 177 IS TO ENSURE THAT COMMUNITY LAW IS INTERPRETED AND APPLIED IN A UNIFORM MANNER IN ALL THE MEMBER STATES . VIEWED IN THAT LIGHT THE PARTICULAR PURPOSE OF THE THIRD PARAGRAPH OF ARTICLE 177 IS TO PREVENT A BODY OF NATIONAL CASE-LAW THAT IS NOT IN ACCORD WITH THE RULES OF COMMUNITY LAW FROM COMING INTO EXISTENCE IN ANY MEMBER STATE . THE REQUIREMENTS ARISING FROM THAT PURPOSE ARE OBSERVED AS REGARDS SUMMARY AND URGENT PROCEEDINGS SUCH AS THOSE IN THE PRESENT CASE , WHERE ORDINARY PROCEEDINGS AS TO THE SUBSTANCE , PERMITTING THE RE-EXAMINATION OF ANY QUESTION OF COMMUNITY LAW PROVISIONALLY DECIDED IN THE SUMMARY PROCEEDINGS , MUST BE INSTITUTED EITHER IN ALL THE CIRCUMSTANCES OR WHEN THE UNSUCCESSFUL PARTY SO REQUIRES .

51 However, the Court has already accepted that indirectly discriminatory national legislation restricting the grant to frontier workers of social advantages within the meaning of Article 7(2) of Regulation No 1612/68 where there is not a sufficient connection to the society in which they are pursuing their activities without residing there may be objectively justified and proportionate to the objective pursued (see, to that effect, judgments of 18 July 2007, Hartmann, C‑212/05, EU:C:2007:437, paragraphs 30 to 35 and 37; 18 July 2007, Geven, C‑213/05, EU:C:2007:438, paragraph 26; 11 September 2007, Hendrix, C‑287/05, EU:C:2007:494, paragraphs 54 and 55; and 20 June 2013, Giersch and Others, C‑20/12, EU:C:2013:411, paragraph 64).

35 Consequently, it must be held that, by precluding by regulation or administrative practice on the grounds of their nationality employed or self-employed workers from other Member States and the members of their families from being attributed large-family status for the purpose of the award of special benefits for such families and from being awarded family allowances, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 48 and 52 of the EC Treaty, Article 7 of Regulation No 1612/68, Article 7 of Regulation No 1251/70, Article 7 of Directive 75/34 and Article 3 of Regulation No 1408/71.

44. When such an economic entity infringes the competition rules, it is for that entity, in accordance with the principle of personal responsibility, to answer for that infringement (see, inter alia, Alliance One International and Standard Commercial Tobacco v Commission , paragraph 42, and Commission v Stichting Administratiekantoor Portielje , paragraph 37 and the case-law cited).

30. It follows from the foregoing that the application is admissible. Substance

36. Secondly, the issue of classifying the connection between Mr Spies von Büllesheim and that company cannot be resolved on the basis of national law (see, by analogy, judgment in Kiiski , C‑116/06, EU:C:2007:536, paragraph 26).

51. It is a feature of such use not only that no rent is paid but also that there is no genuine agreement on the duration of the right of enjoyment or the right of occupation of the dwelling, or to exclude third parties.

25 In laying down in Articles 15(1) and 51(1)(a) of Regulation No 207/2009 a rule under which an EU trade mark that has not been used for a period of five years is to be revoked, the EU legislature, as is apparent from recital 10 of the regulation, intended to make preservation of the rights connected with an EU trade mark conditional on the mark being actually used. That condition can be explained by the consideration that it would not be justifiable if a mark which is not used were to obstruct competition by limiting the range of signs which can be registered as marks by others and by denying competitors the opportunity to use a sign identical or similar to that mark when putting onto the internal market goods or services which are identical or similar to those covered by the mark in question (see, to this effect, judgments of 19 December 2012, Leno Merken, C‑149/11, EU:C:2012:816, paragraph 32, and of 26 September 2013, Centrotherm Systemtechnik v OHIM and centrotherm Clean Solutions, C‑610/11 P, EU:C:2013:593, paragraph 54).

43. Accordingly, the Austrian legislation must be regarded as having existed on 31 December 1993 for the purposes of Article 57(1) EC.

33. Although in general the principle of legal certainty precludes a Community measure from taking effect from a point in time before its publication, it may exceptionally be otherwise where the purpose to be achieved so demands and where the legitimate expectations of those concerned are duly respected (see, to that effect, Case C-368/89 Crispoltoni [1991] ECR I-3695, paragraph 17; Gemeente Leusden and Holin Groep , cited above, paragraph 59; see also the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in National & Provincial Building Society v. United Kingdom of 23 October 1997, Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1997-VII, § 80).

42. Il convient, dès lors, d’apprécier la conformité du contrôle technique litigieux au regard de l’article 28 CE, en vérifiant si l’obligation de soumettre les véhicules d’occasion précédemment immatriculés dans d’autres États membres à un contrôle technique préalablement à leur immatriculation en Pologne constitue une mesure d’effet équivalent à une restriction quantitative à l’importation, interdite par cette disposition.

50. That conclusion is supported by the actual meaning of the term ‘generic’, as clarified by the case-law of the Court. The way in which the name of a product becomes generic is the result of an objective process, at the end of which that name, although referring to the geographical place where the product in question was originally manufactured or marketed, has become the common name of that product (see, to that effect, Joined Cases C‑465/02 and C‑466/02 Germany and Denmark v Commission [2005] ECR I‑9115, paragraphs 75 to 100, and Case C‑132/05 Commission v Germany [2008] ECR I‑957, paragraph 53).

18 LA COUR A CONSTATE QUE LES DEUX CATEGORIES DE PRODUITS PRESENTENT DES CARACTERISTIQUES DIFFERENTES, TANT DU FAIT DE LEURS QUALITES ORGANOLEPTIQUES QUE DU POINT DE VUE DE LEUR SUSCEPTIBILITE DE REPONDRE AUX MEMES BESOINS DES CONSOMMATEURS . LA COUR A DONC CONCLU QUE CES DEUX CATEGORIES DE PRODUITS NE SONT PAS SIMILAIRES AU SENS DE L' ARTICLE*95 .

32. A difference in treatment of that kind can be justified only if it is based on objective considerations that are independent of the nationality of the persons concerned and proportionate to the legitimate aim of the national provisions (Case C-237/94 O’Flynn [1996] ECR I-2617, paragraph 19, and Case C-138/02 Collins [2004] ECR I-2703, paragraph 66).

23. À cet égard, il est constant que, à la date à laquelle le délai fixé dans l’avis motivé est venu à expiration, les directives 89/665 et 92/13 ainsi que la législation française y afférente trouvaient encore à s’appliquer et, partant, un recours fondé sur le défaut de transposition de ces directives n’était pas dépourvu d’objet.

38 It is true that the increase in the use of renewable energy sources for the production of electricity constitutes one of the important components of the package of measures needed in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are amongst the main causes of climate change that the European Union and its Member States have pledged to combat, and to comply, in particular, with the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Such an increase is also designed to protect the health and life of humans, animals and plants, which are among the public interest grounds listed in Article 36 TFEU. Moreover, it is also clear from Article 194(1)(c) TFEU that the development of renewable energy is one of the objectives that must guide EU energy policy (judgment of 1 July 2014, Ålands Vindkraft, C‑573/12, EU:C:2014:2037, paragraphs 78 to 81).

81. It is also clear from Article 194(1)(c) TFEU that the development of renewable energy is one of the objectives that must guide EU energy policy.

10IN PARAGRAPH 15 OF THE DECISION IN THAT CASE IT WAS ALSO HELD THAT BENEFITS IN KIND FOR WHICH THE WORKER IS AUTHORIZED TO GO TO ANOTHER MEMBER STATE ' ' COVER ALL TREATMENT CALCULATED TO BE EFFECTIVE FOR THE SICKNESS OR DISEASE FROM WHICH THE PERSON CONCERNED SUFFERS ' ' , AND IN PARAGRAPH 16 IT WAS HELD TO FOLLOW THAT , ' ' IN THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES IT IS OF LITTLE IMPORTANCE WHETHER THE BENEFIT IN KIND WHICH THE WORKER REQUIRES CAN BE PROVIDED ON THE TERRITORY OF THE MEMBER STATE WHERE HE RESIDES SINCE THE MERE FACT THAT THAT BENEFIT CORRESPONDS TO TREATMENT MORE APPROPRIATE TO THE STATE OF HEALTH OF THE PERSON CONCERNED IS DECISIVE FOR THE PURPOSE OF ISSUING THE AUTHORIZATION REFERRED TO IN THE ABOVE-MENTIONED PARAGRAPH ( 1 ) ( C ) ' ' . IN SETTING A LIMIT TO THE COMPETENT INSTITUTION ' S POWER OF DECISION IN THIS AREA , PARAGRAPH 17 OF THE SAID DECISION IMPLICITLY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT IT IS FOR THAT INSTITUTION OBJECTIVELY TO ASSESS THE MEDICAL GROUNDS FOR GRANTING OR REFUSING THE AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED UNDER ARTICLE 22 ( 1 ) ( C ), HAVING REGARD INTER ALIA TO THE STATE OF HEALTH OF THE PERSON CONCERNED , THE SERIOUSNESS OF HIS SICKNESS OR DISEASE AND THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE TREATMENT IN QUESTION .

Il importe de rappeler que, selon une jurisprudence constante, l’existence d’un manquement doit être appréciée en fonction de la situation de l’État membre telle qu’elle se présentait au terme du délai fixé dans l’avis motivé et que les changements éventuels intervenus par la suite ne sauraient être pris en compte par la Cour (arrêts du 31 mars 2011, Commission/Grèce, C‑407/09, EU:C:2011:196, points 16 et jurisprudence citée, ainsi que du 16 juillet 2015, Commission/Slovénie, C‑140/14, non publié, EU:C:2015:501, point 63).

118 An undertaking which has participated in such a single and complex infringement of that kind by its own conduct, which fell within the definition of an ‘agreement’ or ‘concerted practice’ having an anticompetitive object within the meaning of Article 101(1) TFEU and was intended to help bring about the infringement as a whole, may thus be responsible also in respect of the conduct of other undertakings in the context of the same infringement throughout the period of its participation in the infringement. That is the position where it is shown that the undertaking intended, through its own conduct, to contribute to the common objectives pursued by all the participants and that it was aware of the offending conduct planned or put into effect by other undertakings in pursuit of the same objectives or that it could reasonably have foreseen it and was prepared to take the risk (see, to that effect, judgment of 24 June 2015, Fresh Del Monte Produce v Commission and Commission v Fresh Del Monte Produce , C‑293/13 P and C‑294/13 P, EU:C:2015:416, paragraph 157 and the case-law cited).

157. An undertaking which has participated in such a single and complex infringement, by its own conduct, which meets the definition of an agreement or concerted practice having an anti-competitive object within the meaning of Article 81(1) EC and was intended to help bring about the infringement as a whole, may also be responsible for the conduct of other undertakings in the context of the same infringement throughout the period of its participation in the infringement. That is the position where it is shown that the undertaking intended, through its own conduct, to contribute to the common objectives pursued by all the participants and that it was aware of the offending conduct planned or put into effect by other undertakings in pursuit of the same objectives or that it could reasonably have foreseen it and was prepared to take the risk (judgment in Commission v Verhuizingen Coppens , C‑441/11 P, EU:C:2012:778, paragraph 42 and the case-law cited).

22 It is also clear from the Court's case-law (see, to that effect, in particular, Joined Cases 87/77, 130/77, 22/83, 9/84 and 10/84 Salerno and Others v Commission and Council [1985] ECR 2523, paragraph 56; Case 294/83 Les Verts v Parliament [1986] ECR 1339, paragraph 28; Case 242/87 Commission v Council [1989] ECR 1425, paragraph 18; and Case 16/88 Commission v Council [1989] ECR 3457, paragraphs 15 to 19) that, in the system of the Treaty, any implementation of expenditure by the Commission in principle presupposes, in addition to the entry of the relevant appropriation in the budget, an act of secondary legislation (commonly called the `basic act') from which the expenditure derives.

29. Consequently, and as is apparent from the seventh recital in the preamble to the Directive, for the application of the Directive, products which are not held for private purposes must necessarily be regarded as being held for commercial purposes.

16 In that regard, the Court has already held that it must in principle confine its examination to the matters which the referring court has decided to submit to it in its request for a preliminary ruling. Thus, as regards the application of the relevant national legislation, the Court must proceed on the basis of the situation which the referring court considers to be established (judgment of 8 June 2016,Hünnebeck, C‑479/14, EU:C:2016:412, paragraph 36 and the case-law cited). It is clear from the settled case-law of the Court that questions on the interpretation of EU law referred by a national court in the factual and legislative context which that court is responsible for defining and the accuracy of which is not a matter for the Court to determine, enjoy a presumption of relevance (judgment of 8 December 2016, Eurosaneamientos and Others, C‑532/15 and C‑538/15, EU:C:2016:932, paragraph 28 and the case-law cited).

36. In that regard, it should be recalled, first, that, according to clause 1(a) of the framework agreement, its objective is to ‘improve the quality of fixed-term work by ensuring the application of the principle of non-discrimination’. Similarly, the preamble to the framework agreement states that it ‘illustrates the willingness of the Social Partners to establish a general framework for ensuring equal treatment for fixed-term workers by protecting them against discrimination.’ Recital 14 of Directive 1999/70 explains that the aim of the framework agreement is, in particular, to improve the quality of fixed-term work by setting out the minimum requirements in order to ensure the application of the principle of non-discrimination.

61. In those circumstances, there is no need to answer the third and fourth questions. Costs

56 The tasks that have been allocated to the ECB under the ESM Treaty consist in assessing the urgency of requests for stability support (Article 4(4)), participating in the meetings of the Board of Governors and the Board of Directors as an observer (Articles 5(3) and 6(2)) and, in liaison with the Commission, assessing requests for stability support (Article 13(1)), negotiating a memorandum of understanding (Article 13(3)) and monitoring compliance with the conditionality attached to the financial assistance (Article 13(7)) (judgment of 27 November 2012, Pringle, C‑370/12, EU:C:2012:756, paragraph 157).

17 In the absence of Community rules governing the matter, it is for the domestic legal system of each Member State to designate the courts and tribunals having jurisdiction and to lay down the detailed procedural rules governing actions for safeguarding rights which individuals derive from the direct effect of Community law. However, such rules must not be less favourable than those governing similar domestic actions nor render virtually impossible or excessively difficult the exercise of rights conferred by Community law (see, in particular, the judgments in Case 33/76 Rewe v Landwirtschaftskammer fuer das Saarland [1976] ECR 1989, paragraph 5, Case 45/76 Comet v Produktschap voor Siergewassen [1976] ECR 2043, paragraphs 12 to 16, Case 68/79 Hans Just v Danish Ministry for Fiscal Affairs [1980] ECR 501, paragraph 25, Case 199/82 Amministrazione delle Finanze dello Stato v San Giorgio [1983] ECR 3595, paragraph 14, Joined Cases 331/85, 376/85 and 378/85 Bianco and Girard v Directeur Général des Douanes des Droits Indirects [1988] ECR 1099, paragraph 12, Case 104/86 Commission v Italy [1988] ECR 1799, paragraph 7, Joined Cases 123/87 and 330/87 Jeunehomme and EGI v Belgian State [1988] ECR 4517, paragraph 17, Case C-96/91 Commission v Spain [1992] ECR I-3789, paragraph 12, and Joined Cases C-6/90 and C-9/90 Francovich and Others v Italian Republic [1991] ECR I-5357, paragraph 43).

83. De plus, en l’espèce, l’allégation selon laquelle le Tribunal aurait méconnu le principe d’égalité de traitement compte tenu de l’inexistence d’un tel seuil plancher est trop générale et imprécise pour pouvoir faire l’objet d’une appréciation juridique (voir, en ce sens, arrêts du 8 juillet 1999, Hercules Chemicals/Commission, C‑51/92 P, Rec. p. I‑4235, point 113, et ordonnance du 12 décembre 2006, Autosalone Ispra/Commission, C‑129/06 P, non publiée au Recueil, point 31).

46. In this connection, it is true that preventing possible tax evasion, avoidance and abuse is an objective recognised and encouraged by Directive 2006/112 and European Union law cannot be relied on for fraudulent or abusive ends (see, inter alia, Case C-255/02 Halifax and Others [2006] ECR I-1609, paragraphs 68 and 71; Joined Cases C-80/11 and C-142/11 Mahagében and Dávid [2012] ECR, paragraph 41; and Bonik , paragraphs 35 and 36).

15 Furthermore, Article 22 ( 8 ) of the Sixth Directive provides that "... Member States may impose other obligations which they deem necessary for the correct levying and collection of the tax and for the prevention of fraud ". In doing so, Member States are not required to use the procedure laid down in Article 27 of the Directive . Article 22 ( 8 ) is a special provision limited to the specific area of taxpayers' obligations and only relates to the right of Member States to lay down obligations other than those provided for in the Directive .

29. Une marque fait l’objet d’un «usage sérieux» lorsqu’elle est utilisée, conformément à sa fonction essentielle qui est de garantir l’identité d’origine des produits ou des services pour lesquels elle a été enregistrée, aux fins de créer ou de conserver un débouché pour ces produits et services, à l’exclusion d’usages à caractère symbolique ayant pour seul objet le maintien des droits conférés par la marque. L’appréciation du caractère sérieux de l’usage de la marque doit reposer sur l’ensemble des faits et des circonstances propres à établir la réalité de l’exploitation commerciale de celle-ci dans la vie des affaires, en particulier les usages considérés comme justifiés dans le secteur économique concerné pour maintenir ou créer des parts de marché au profit des produits ou des services protégés par la marque, la nature de ces produits ou de ces services, les caractéristiques du marché, l’étendue et la fréquence de l’usage de la marque (arrêt Ansul, EU:C:2003:145, point 43; ordonnance La Mer Technology, EU:C:2004:50, point 27; arrêts Sunrider/OHMI, C‑416/04 P, EU:C:2006:310, point 70, et Leno Merken, C‑149/11, EU:C:2012:816, point 29).

62. As regards the obligation to reimburse those costs, it must be recalled that according to recitals 2, 7, 8, 10 and 11 in the preamble to Regulation No 1206/2001 the aim of the regulation is to make the taking of evidence in a cross-border context simple, effective and rapid. The taking, by a court of one Member State, of evidence in another Member State must not lead to the lengthening of national proceedings. That is why Regulation No 1206/2001 established a regime binding on all the Member States, with the exception of the Kingdom of Denmark, to remove obstacles which may arise in that field.

51. Furthermore, and above all, the European Union legislation on the coordination of national social security legislations, taking account in particular of its underlying objectives, cannot, except in the case of an express exception in conformity with those objectives, be applied in such a way as to deprive a migrant worker, or those claiming under him, of benefits granted under the legislation of a single Member State on the basis solely of the insurance periods completed under that legislation (see, to that effect, in particular, Case 9/67 Colditz [1967] ECR 229, 234; Case 100/78 Rossi [1979] ECR 831, paragraph 14; Schwemmer , paragraph 58 and the case-law cited, and Case C-388/09 da Silva Martins [2011] ECR I-0000, paragraph 75).

31. Accordingly, as rightly observed by, inter alia, the Hungarian, Austrian and Finnish Governments and by the Commission of the European Communities, only those contracts awarded by an entity which is a ‘contracting entity’ within the meaning of Directive 2004/17, in connection with and for the exercise of activities in the sectors listed in Articles 3 to 7 of that directive, fall within the field of application thereof.

28. It follows that, where, without initiating the formal investigation procedure under Article 88(2) EC, the Commission finds, on the basis of Article 88(3) EC, that aid is compatible with the common market, the persons intended to benefit from those procedural guarantees may secure compliance therewith only if they are able to challenge that decision before the Community Courts. For those reasons, an action for the annulment of such a decision brought by a person who is concerned within the meaning of Article 88(2) EC is declared to be admissible where that person seeks, by instituting proceedings, to safeguard the procedural rights available to him under the latter provision ( Commission v Aktionsgemeinschaft Recht und Eigentum , paragraph 35 and the case-law cited there, and Germany and Others v Kronofrance , paragraph 38).

50. Having regard to the objective of protection of public health pursued by the EU rules on medicinal products for human use and thus recalled, the terms ‘prepared industrially’ and ‘manufactured by a method involving an industrial process’ cannot be interpreted narrowly. Those terms must therefore include, at the very least, any preparation or manufacture involving an industrial process. Such a process is characterised in general by a succession of operations, which may, in particular, be mechanical or chemical, in order to obtain a significant quantity of a standardised product.