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81
Thus, it is following a schematic interpretation of the relevant EU rules that the Court of Justice interpreted those rules as meaning that, as from 2000, the Commission is required to comply with a legal time limit when adopting a decision on financial corrections (see judgments of 4 September 2014, Spain v Commission, C‑192/13 P, EU:C:2014:2156, paragraphs 56 to 82, and of 4 September 2014, Spain v Commission, C‑197/13 P, EU:C:2014:2157, paragraphs 56 to 82).
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38. The second and the third subparagraphs of Article 4(5) of the Sixth Directive are, consequently, closely linked since they pursue the same objective, namely the treatment of bodies governed by public law as taxable persons, even when they are acting as public authorities. Those subparagraphs are thus subject to the same logic, by which the Community legislature intended to limit the scope of the treatment of bodies governed by public law as non-taxable persons, so that the general rule stated in Articles 2(1) and 4(1) and (2) of that directive, under which any activity of an economic nature is, in principle, to be subject to VAT, is observed.
| 0 |
862,001 |
60. The suspension of a tendering procedure for the supply of medical devices may, of course, lead to delays liable to give rise to problems in running a hospital such as Venizelio-Pananio. However, as pointed out by the Advocate General in point 118 of her Opinion and pursuant to Article 14b of Directive 93/42, the objective of the protection of public health constitutes an overriding public-interest requirement entitling Member States to derogate from the principle of the free movement of goods provided that the measures taken comply with the principle of proportionality (see Case 120/78 Rewe‑Zentral [1979] ECR 649 (‘ Cassis de Dijon ’), paragraph 8; Case C‑270/02 Commission v Italy [2004] ECR I-1559, paragraphs 21 and 22; and Joined Cases C‑158/04 and C‑159/04 Alfa Vita Vassilopoulos and Carrefour-Marinopoulos [2006] ECR I-8135, paragraphs 20 to 23).
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42. À défaut de consister en une somme d’argent convenue entre les parties, cette valeur, pour être subjective, doit être celle que le bénéficiaire de la prestation de services, qui constitue la contrepartie de la livraison de biens, attribue aux services qu’il entend se procurer et correspondre à la somme qu’il est disposé à dépenser à cette fin (arrêts du 2 juin 1994, Empire Stores, C‑33/93, Rec. p. I‑2329, point 19, et Orfey Balgaria, précité, point 45).
| 0 |
862,002 |
37. Those conditions, read in the light of the fourth recital in the preamble to that directive, according to which beneficiaries of the right of residence must not become an unreasonable burden on the public finances of the host Member State, are based on the idea that the exercise of the right of residence of citizens of the Union can be subordinated to the legitimate interests of the Member States ( Baumbast and R , paragraph 90).
– Consideration of the first plea
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41. La Cour a déjà jugé que la condition relative à l’existence d’une impossibilité absolue d’exécution n’est pas remplie lorsque l’État membre défendeur se borne à faire part à la Commission des difficultés juridiques, politiques ou pratiques que présentait la mise en œuvre de la décision concernée, sans entreprendre une véritable démarche auprès des entreprises en cause afin de récupérer l’aide et sans proposer à la Commission d’autres modalités de mise en œuvre de ladite décision qui auraient permis de surmonter ces difficultés (voir arrêt du 5 mai 2011, Commission/Italie, C‑305/09, non encore publié au Recueil, point 33 et jurisprudence citée).
| 0 |
862,003 |
61
The conditions for granting that derived right of residence must not be stricter than those provided for by Directive 2004/38 for the grant of a derived right of residence to a third-country national who is a family member of a Union citizen who has exercised his right of freedom of movement by settling in a Member State other than that of which he is a national. Even though Directive 2004/38 does not cover a situation such as that mentioned in the preceding paragraph of this judgment, it must be applied, by analogy, to that situation (see, by analogy, judgments of 12 March 2014, O. and B., C‑456/12, EU:C:2014:135, paragraphs 50 and 61, and of 10 May 2017, Chavez-Vilchez and Others, C‑133/15, EU:C:2017:354, paragraphs 54 and 55).
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17 As regards the ground of application relating to the Danish content clause, the Commission is not, however, barred from supporting its arguments in that regard by referring to other provisions of the contract documents which amplify that clause on specific points.
| 0 |
862,004 |
25. Moreover, it is clear from the Court’s case-law (Case C-273/00 Sieckmann [2002] ECR I-11737, paragraphs 46 to 55, and Libertel , paragraphs 28 and 29) that a graphic representation in terms of Article 2 of the Directive must enable the sign to be represented visually, particularly by means of images, lines or characters, so that it can be precisely identified.
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32. It is established case-law that agreements whose object, as will be apparent from the very nature of such agreements, is to share customers for services constitute forms of collusion that are particularly injurious to the proper functioning of normal competition. Accordingly, agreements to share customers, like agreements on prices, clearly form part of the category of the most serious restrictions of competition (see, to that effect, judgment in Commission v Stichting Administratiekantoor Portielje , C‑440/11 P, EU:C:2013:514, paragraphs 95 and 111).
| 0 |
862,005 |
70 Second, according to the case-law of the Court, just like the status of migrant worker itself, the rights enjoyed by members of a Community worker's family under Regulation No 1612/68 can, in certain circumstances, continue to exist even after the employment relationship has ended (see, to that effect, Echternach and Moritz, paragraph 21, and Case C-85/96 Martínez Sala [1998] ECR I-2691, paragraph 32).
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35. As regards marks made up of signs or indications that are also used as advertising slogans, indications of quality or incitements to purchase the goods or services covered by those marks, registration of such marks is not excluded as such by virtue of such use (see Merz & Krell , paragraph 40, and OHIM v Erpo Möbelwerk , paragraph 41).
| 0 |
862,006 |
28. There is a single supply where two or more elements or acts supplied by the taxable person to the customer are so closely linked that they form, objectively, a single, indivisible economic supply, which it would be artificial to split ( Levob Verzekeringen and OV Bank , paragraph 22; Case C-425/06 Part Service [2008] ECR I-897, paragraph 53; and Bog and Others , paragraph 53). There is also a single supply where one or more elements are to be regarded as constituting the principal supply, while other elements are to be regarded, by contrast, as one or more ancillary supplies which share the tax treatment of the principal supply (see, in particular, CPP , paragraph 30; Levob Verzekeringen and OV Bank , paragraph 21; and Bog and Others , paragraph 54 and case-law cited).
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85. Nor is the fact that an undertaking does not act on the outcome of a meeting having an anti-competitive purpose such as to relieve it of responsibility for the fact of its participation in a cartel, unless it has publicly distanced itself from what was agreed in the meeting (see Case C-291/98 P Sarrió v Commission [2000] ECR I-9991, paragraph 50).
| 0 |
862,007 |
32. It should be noted at the outset that, given the date on which the registration of the contested mark was obtained, namely, 2 October 2007, and the date on which the applicants for a declaration of invalidity submitted their application before OHIM, that is, on 20 November of the same year, the present ground of appeal must be assessed with regard to the provisions of Regulation No 40/94, since Regulation No 207/2009 was not in force on those dates (see, inter alia, Case C‑122/12 P Rintisch v OHIM [2013] ECR, paragraph 2).
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25 The Netherlands Government' s argument cannot be upheld . In fact, it is common ground that the seeking, the collection and the possession of eggs of the wood pigeon, the carrion crow, the jackdaw, the jay and the magpie, which are authorized under the national legislation, are contrary to Article 5(c ) of the directive . As has been emphasized above, the fact that a number of activities incompatible with the prohibitions contained in the directive are unknown in a particular Member State cannot justify the absence of appropriate legal provisions . In order to secure the full implementation of directives in law and not only in fact, Member States must establish a specific legal framework in the area in question . The third complaint must therefore be regarded as well founded .
Fourth complaint : derogations concerning the prevention of damage
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862,008 |
33. The Court has also held that it is for the competent authority to assess whether a failure to comply with a provision of Directive 91/628 can be remedied and whether such failure must result in the export refund being forfeited, reduced or retained. It is also for that authority to decide whether the export refund must be reduced on a pro rata basis according to the number of animals which may, in its view, have suffered as a result of non-compliance with Directive 91/628 or whether that refund should not be paid since the failure to comply with a provision of that directive has inevitably had an impact on the welfare of all the animals (see, to that effect, Viamex Agrar Handels and ZVK , paragraph 44, and Viamex Agrar Handels , paragraph 51).
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25 THE POINT TO BE MADE IN THIS REGARD IS THAT THE COMMISSION ADDRESSED ITS DECISION NOT TO THE MICHELIN GROUP AS A WHOLE BUT ONLY TO ITS NETHERLANDS SUBSIDIARY WHOSE ACTIVITIES ARE CONCENTRATED ON THE NETHERLANDS MARKET . IT HAS NOT BEEN DISPUTED THAT MICHELIN NV ' S MAIN COMPETITORS ALSO CARRY ON THEIR ACTIVITIES IN THE NETHERLANDS THROUGH NETHERLANDS SUBSIDIARIES OF THEIR RESPECTIVE GROUPS .
| 0 |
862,009 |
10 That applies to the requirement that the mother reside on the territory of the Grand Duchy for a year preceding the birth of the child, because such a requirement is in practice more easily met by Luxembourg nationals than by nationals of other Member States (see, in that regard, Case C-279/89 Commission v United Kingdom [1992] ECR I-5785, paragraph 42).
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73. However, to the extent that the Commission puts forward more detailed objections of inadmissibility in relation to a number of specific pleas or complaints of the appeal, those objections fall to be addressed in the context of the examination of the pleas concerned.
The first plea, alleging breach of the obligation to state reasons
Arguments of the parties
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862,010 |
90. According to settled case-law, the criteria for assessing the distinctive character of three-dimensional trade marks consisting of the shape of the product itself are no different from those applicable to other categories of trade mark (judgments in Mag Instrument v OHIM , C‑136/02 P, EU:C:2004:592, paragraph 30, and Freixenet v OHIM , C‑344/10 P and C‑345/10 P, EU:C:2011:680, paragraph 45). However, for the purpose of applying those criteria, the perception of the average consumer is not necessarily the same in relation to a three-dimensional mark consisting of the appearance of the product itself as it is in relation to a word or figurative mark consisting of a sign which is independent of the appearance of the products it designates. Average consumers are not in the habit of making assumptions about the origin of products on the basis of their shape or the shape of their packaging in the absence of any graphic or word element, and it could therefore prove more difficult to establish distinctive character in relation to such a three-dimensional mark than in relation to a word or figurative mark (judgments in Mag Instrument v OHIM , C‑136/02 P, EU:C:2004:592, paragraph 30, and Freixenet v OHIM , C‑344/10 P and C‑345/10 P, EU:C:2011:680, paragraph 46).
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112. Next, when such remuneration is agreed between the right holders concerned and the broadcasters in an auction, there is nothing to prevent the right holder from asking, at that time, for an amount which takes account of the actual audience and the potential audience both in the Member State of broadcast and in any other Member State in which the broadcasts including the protected subject-matter are also received.
| 0 |
862,011 |
48. Lastly, the criteria on the basis of which must-carry status is awarded must be non-discriminatory. In particular, the award of that status must not, either in law or in fact, be subject to a requirement of establishment on the national territory (see, to that effect, Case C‑211/91 Commission v Belgium [1992] ECR I‑6757, paragraph 12).
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9. In accordance with the combined application of the UStG and the Law on horse-race betting and lotteries (Rennwett- und Lotteriegesetz (the ‘RennwLottG’)), the following are exempt from VAT: betting on public horse racing (‘horse-race betting’), fixed-odds bets, lotteries and draws.
The dispute in the main proceedings and the question referred for a preliminary ruling
| 0 |
862,012 |
62. While the Court has indeed held that such an objective may be justification for the assumption by the competent institution of the costs of hospital treatment received outside the competent Member State being subject to prior authorisation by that institution (see Case C‑157/99 Smits and Peerbooms [2001] ECR I‑5473, paragraphs 76 to 80, and Case C‑385/99 Müller-Fauré and Van Riet [2003] ECR I‑4509, paragraphs 76 to 82), considerations connected with that objective are not relevant, by contrast, where the competent institution has precisely consented, by issuing a Form E 111 or E 112, to one of its insured persons receiving hospital treatment outside the competent Member State.
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11 It must be pointed out that, inasmuch as the letter refuses the BEUC access to the non-confidential file, it constitutes not merely a communication but a decision which adversely affects the interests of the BEUC. The Commission' s letter must therefore be regarded as an act adversely affecting the BEUC which may be the subject of an action under Article 173 of the EEC Treaty.
| 0 |
862,013 |
75. In addition, the Court has stated that that interpretation, the only one capable of maintaining the full effectiveness of the Directive, does not disregard the industrial or commercial character of the general-interest needs which the body concerned is intended to meet, for that aspect is necessarily taken into consideration for the purpose of determining whether or not that body satisfies the condition laid down in the first indent of the second paragraph of Article 1(b) of the Directive (Commission v Spain , paragraphs 56 and 58).
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57 That applies in particular to a sentence of imprisonment and, a fortiori, to deportation, which negates the very right of residence conferred and guaranteed by Decision No 1/80 (see, by analogy, Watson and Belman, paragraph 20, Pieck, paragraph 19, and Messner, paragraph 14, cited above).
| 0 |
862,014 |
51
Given that, in principle, it falls to the Member States to determine the conditions in which improperly invoiced VAT may be adjusted, the Court has accepted that a system in which, first, the seller of the property who has paid the VAT to the tax authority in error may seek to be reimbursed and, secondly, the purchaser of that property may bring a civil law action against that seller for recovery of the sums paid but not due, observes the principles of neutrality and effectiveness. Such a system enables the purchaser who bore the tax invoiced in error to obtain reimbursement of the sums unduly paid (see, to that effect, judgment of 15 March 2007, Reemtsma Cigarettenfabriken, C‑35/05, EU:C:2007:167, paragraphs 38 and 39 and the case-law cited).
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41. Or, il ressort de l’article 52, paragraphe 1, TFUE que la protection de la santé publique peut justifier des restrictions à la liberté d’établissement. L’importance dudit objectif est confirmée par les articles 168, paragraphe 1, TFUE et 35 de la charte des droits fondamentaux de l’Union européenne en vertu desquels, notamment, un niveau élevé de protection de la santé humaine est assuré dans la définition et la mise en œuvre de toutes les politiques et actions de l’Union (voir arrêt Blanco Pérez et Chao Gómez, précité, points 63 et 65).
| 0 |
862,015 |
43 According to settled case-law, it is for the national court to establish the extent of any discrimination against exported products (see, by way of analogy, Scharbatke, paragraph 11). For that purpose it must check, during a reference period, on the financial equivalence of the total amounts levied on national products processed or marketed on the domestic market in connection with the charge in question and the advantages afforded exclusively to those products (see inter alia, by way of analogy, UCAL, paragraph 25).
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15. That specific requirement in relation optional price supplements, within the meaning of the last sentence of Article 23(1) of Regulation No 1008/2008, is designed to prevent a customer of air services from being induced, during the process of booking a flight, to purchase services additional to the flight proper which are not unavoidable and necessary for the purposes of that flight, unless he chooses expressly to purchase those additional services and to pay the corresponding price supplement.
| 0 |
862,016 |
54. In that regard, it is established case-law that the lawfulness of a decision concerning State aid is to be assessed in the light of the information available to the Commission when the decision was adopted (see, inter alia, Case 234/84 Belgium v Commission [1986] ECR 2263, paragraph 16; Joined Cases C-74/00 P and C-75/00 P Falck and Acciaierie di Bolzano v Commission [2002] ECR I‑7869, paragraph 168; and Case C-276/02 Spain v Commission [2004] ECR I‑8091, paragraph 31).
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16 IN SO FAR AS THE BELGIAN GOVERNMENT CONTENDS THAT THE SUBSCRIPTION OF CAPITAL IN QUESTION WAS LINKED TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A PLAN FOR REORGANIZING THE UNDERTAKING , IT MUST BE EMPHASIZED THAT THE LEGALITY OF THE CONTESTED DECISION IS TO BE ASSESSED IN THE LIGHT OF THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE TO THE COMMISSION WHEN THE DECISION WAS ADOPTED . ALTHOUGH THE EXISTENCE OF A REORGANIZATION PLAN WAS IN FACT BRIEFLY MENTIONED BY THE BELGIAN AUTHORITIES IN THEIR CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE COMMISSION , THE CONTENT OF THAT PLAN WAS NEVER NOTIFIED TO IT IN THE COURSE OF THE PROCEDURE UNDER ARTICLE 93 OF THE TREATY .
| 1 |
862,017 |
41. Finally, so far as concerns the third argument, it is apparent from Joined Cases C‑403/08 and C-429/08 Football Association Premier League and Others [2011] ECR I-0000, paragraphs 76 to 145, that communications to the public by satellite must be capable of being received in all the Member States and that they therefore by definition have a cross-border nature. Furthermore, the communications at issue in the main proceedings display such a nature since they involve Belgian and Netherlands companies, Airfield and Canal Digitaal, and the programme-carrying signals are intended in particular for television viewers residing in Belgium and Luxembourg.
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26 The purpose of that directive is to lay down various rules for the carrying out of physical inspections of goods and the completion of the required administrative formalities upon crossing a frontier with a view, according to its preamble, to reducing the waiting time at frontiers and ensuring a smoother flow of goods traffic between Member States .
| 0 |
862,018 |
39. It is clear from the scheme and purpose of Directive 2006/112, as well as from the place of Article 13 thereof in the common system of VAT established by the Sixth Directive, that any activity of an economic nature is, in principle, to be taxable. As a general rule and in accordance with Article 2(1) of Directive 2006/112, the supply of services for consideration, including those supplied by bodies governed by public law, is to be subject to VAT. Articles 9 and 13 of Directive 2006/112 thus give a very wide scope to VAT (see, to that effect, the judgment of 16 September 2008 in Case C‑288/07 Isle of Wight Council and Others , not yet published in the ECR, paragraphs 25 to 28 and 38).
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35. À cet égard, il convient de rappeler, premièrement, que l’interprétation que la Cour donne d’une disposition de droit de l’Union se limite à éclairer et à préciser la signification et la portée de celle-ci, telle qu’elle aurait dû être comprise et appliquée depuis le moment de son entrée en vigueur (voir arrêt Heininger, précité, point 51 et jurisprudence citée).
| 0 |
862,019 |
Par ailleurs, la Cour a déjà confirmé la possibilité de prendre en considération l’interprétation de dispositions imposant
des mesures restrictives en tenant compte de la rédaction divergente de ces dispositions dans les différentes versions linguistiques,
de leur contexte et de leur finalité (voir, en ce sens, arrêt du 5 mars 2015, Ezz e.a./Conseil, C‑220/14 P, EU:C:2015:147,
points 69 à 72).
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40. A sale which allows the proprietor to realise the economic value of his trade mark exhausts the exclusive rights conferred by the Directive, more particularly the right to prohibit the acquiring third party from reselling the goods.
| 0 |
862,020 |
33. However, Community law, as it now stands, does not contain any specific provision excluding or limiting the power of Member States to introduce taxes, duties or charges other than turnover taxes ( Wisselink and Others , paragraph 13, and Case C‑318/96 SPAR [1998] ECR I‑785, paragraph 21). It is clear even from the terms of Article 33 of the Sixth Directive that Community law permits systems of taxation to exist concurrently with VAT ( Wisselink and Others , paragraph 14; Case C‑109/90 Giant [1991] ECR I‑1385, paragraph 9; and SPAR , paragraph 21; see also, to that effect, Case 73/85 Kerrutt [1986] ECR 2219, paragraph 22).
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26. S’agissant de l’argumentation par laquelle Nature-Balance reproche au Tribunal d’avoir considéré qu’il existait des doutes raisonnables quant à l’efficacité de la tolpérisone, il y a lieu de rappeler que, conformément aux articles 256 TFUE et 58, premier alinéa, du statut de la Cour de justice de l’Union européenne, le pourvoi est limité aux questions de droit et doit être fondé sur des moyens tirés de l’incompétence du Tribunal, d’irrégularités de la procédure suivie devant le Tribunal portant atteinte aux intérêts de la partie requérante ou de la violation du droit de l’Union par le Tribunal (voir, en ce sens, arrêt Commission/Brazzelli Lualdi e.a., C‑136/92 P, EU:C:1994:211, point 47).
| 0 |
862,021 |
88. Although in those circumstances Article 4(2) of Directive 85/337 gives the competent authority a degree of freedom in appraising whether or not a particular project must be made subject to an assessment, it is, however, clear from settled case-law that the limits of that discretion are to be found in the obligation, set out in Article 2(1) of the directive, that all projects which are likely to have significant effects on the environment are to be subject to an assessment (see, to that effect, Case C-435/97 WWF and Others [1999] ECR I-5613, paragraphs 44 and 45; Case C-87/02 Commission v Italy , paragraphs 43 and 44; and Case C‑83/03 Commission v Italy [2005] ECR I-4747, paragraph 19).
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23. Tel est le cas dès lors que les dispositions du droit de l’Union en cause ont été rendues applicables de manière directe et inconditionnelle, par le droit national, à de telles situations (voir, en ce sens, arrêts précités Cicala, point 19, et Nolan, point 47).
| 0 |
862,022 |
48. It must be recalled, in that connection, that a Member State cannot plead provisions, practices or situations prevailing in its domestic legal order to justify failure to observe obligations arising under Community law (see, inter alia, Case C-212/99 Commission v Italy [2001] ECR I-4923, paragraph 34, Case C-195/02 Commission v Spain [2004] ECR I-7857, paragraph 82, and Case C-119/04 Commission v Italy [2006] ECR I-6885, paragraph 25).
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14 DURING THE ORAL PROCEDURE THE DEFENDANT ACKNOWLEDGED THAT VARIOUS POSTS CAPABLE OF BEING FILLED BY THE APPLICANT FELL VACANT SHORTLY AFTER THE EXPIRY OF THE LEAVE ON PERSONAL GROUNDS .
| 0 |
862,023 |
43
It is, however, apparent from the case-law of the Court that measures to prevent tax evasion or avoidance may not, in principle, derogate from the rules relating to the taxable amount except within the limits strictly necessary for achieving that specific aim. They must have as little effect as possible on the objectives and principles of the VAT Directive and may not therefore be used in such a way that they would have the effect of undermining the neutrality of VAT (judgment of 15 May 2014, Almos Agrárkülkereskedelmi, C‑337/13, EU:C:2014:328, paragraph 38).
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27. As far as Regulation No 800/1999 is concerned, it must be pointed out that the first and second subparagraphs of Article 21(1) provide that no refund is to be granted on products which are not of ‘sound and fair marketable quality’ on the date on which the export declaration is accepted, and that products are to be deemed to meet that requirement ‘if they can be marketed on the Community’s territory in normal conditions’. It must be noted that, by using the terms mentioned above, that provision, which came into force after the events in issue in the main proceedings, has not therefore amended but, on the contrary, has confirmed the existing legal position.
| 0 |
862,024 |
85. Furthermore, it should be recalled that, if the referring court were to conclude that there is a presumption of discrimination, the effective application of the principle of equal treatment would require that the burden of proof then falls on the respondents concerned, who must prove that there has been no breach of that principle (see, in particular, judgments in Coleman , C‑303/06, EU:C:2008:415, paragraph 54, and Asociația Accept , C‑81/12, EU:C:2013:275, paragraph 55). In such circumstances, CHEZ RB, as respondent, would have the task of rebutting the existence of such a breach of the principle of equal treatment by proving that the establishment of the practice at issue and its current retention are not in any way founded on the fact that the districts concerned are districts inhabited mainly by Bulgarian nationals of Roma origin, but exclusively on objective factors unrelated to any discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin (see, by analogy, judgments in Coleman , C‑303/06, EU:C:2008:415, paragraph 55, and Asociația Accept , C‑81/12, EU:C:2013:275, paragraph 56).
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75. It follows unequivocally from the terms of that clause themselves that the various measures it envisages are intended to be ‘equivalent’ ( Impact , paragraph 76).
| 0 |
862,025 |
41
It follows that, in the present case, that criminal offence does not constitute a situation arising before the accession of Romania to the European Union which had not produced all its effects before that accession (see, to that effect, judgment of 3 September 2014, X, C‑318/13, EU:C:2014:2133, paragraphs 22 and 23).
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11 IN THE FIRST PLACE IT IS NECESSARY TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THAT THE PRINCIPLE OF EQUALITY , EMBODIED IN PARTICULAR IN THE SECOND SUBPARAGRAPH OF ARTICLE 40 ( 3 ) OF THE EEC TREATY , WHICH PROHIBITS ANY DISCRIMINATION IN THE COMMON ORGANIZATION OF THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETS , OCCUPIES A PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT PLACE AMONG THE RULES OF COMMUNITY LAW INTENDED TO PROTECT THE INTERESTS OF THE INDIVIDUAL . SECONDLY , THE DISREGARD OF THAT PRINCIPLE IN THIS CASE AFFECTED A LIMITED AND CLEARLY DEFINED GROUP OF COMMERCIAL OPERATORS . IT SEEMS , IN FACT , THAT THE NUMBER OF QUELLMEHL PRODUCERS IN THE COMMUNITY IS VERY LIMITED . FURTHER , THE DAMAGE ALLEGED BY THE APPLICANTS GOES BEYOND THE BOUNDS OF THE ECONOMIC RISKS INHERENT IN THE ACTIVITIES IN THE SECTOR CONCERNED . FINALLY , EQUALITY OF TREATMENT WITH THE PRODUCERS OF MAIZE STARCH , WHICH HAD BEEN OBSERVED FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE COMMON ORGANIZATION OF THE MARKET IN CEREALS , WAS ENDED BY THE COUNCIL IN 1974 WITHOUT SUFFICIENT JUSTIFICATION .
| 0 |
862,026 |
15. That does not alter the fact that it is for the Court, where necessary, to examine the circumstances in which the case was referred to it by the national court in order to assess whether it has jurisdiction and, in particular, determine whether the interpretation of Community law that is sought bears any relation to the facts of the main action or its purpose, so that the Court is not obliged to deliver advisory opinions on general or hypothetical questions. If it appears that the question raised is manifestly irrelevant for the purposes of deciding the case, the Court must declare that there is no need to proceed to judgment (Case 244/80 Foglia [1981] ECR 3045, paragraph 21; Lourenço Dias , cited above, paragraph 20; Canal Satélite Digital , cited above, paragraph 19; Case C-167/01 Inspire Art [2003] ECR I-10155, paragraphs 44 and 45; and Siemens and ARGE Telekom , cited above, paragraph 35).
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69. However, having regard to the sensitive nature of questions relating to a person’s personal identity and, in particular, his sexuality, it cannot be concluded that the declared sexuality lacks credibility simply because, due to his reticence in revealing intimate aspects of his life, that person did not declare his homosexuality at the outset.
| 0 |
862,027 |
55. It must be recalled here that motor vehicles present on the market in a Member State are ‘domestic products’ of that State within the meaning of Article 110 TFEU. Where those products are placed on the market for second-hand vehicles in that Member State, they must be regarded as ‘similar’ to imported second-hand vehicles of the same type, characteristics and wear. Second-hand vehicles purchased on the market of that Member State and those purchased in other Member States in order to be imported and placed in circulation in the former State are competing products (see, inter alia, Case C‑47/88 Commission v Denmark , paragraph 17, and Kalinchev , paragraphs 32 and 40).
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23. It is on account of that imbalance that the directive ensures consumer protection by granting, first of all, a right of cancellation to the consumer. Such a right seeks specifically to offset the disadvantage, for the consumer, of sales which take place away from business premises, to enable him over a period of at least seven days to assess the obligations arising under the contract (see, to that effect, Hamilton , paragraph 33).
| 0 |
862,028 |
55. Consequently, although a Member State must be accorded both the power to check that an undertaking, established in another Member State and providing a user undertaking, established in the first Member State, with a service consisting in the making available of workers who are nationals of non-member countries is not availing itself of the freedom to provide services for a purpose other than the provision of the service in question, and the possibility of taking the necessary control measures in that regard (see judgment in Commission v Germany , EU:C:2006:49, paragraph 36), the exercise of that power may not, however, allow that Member State to impose disproportionate requirements.
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10 S' AGISSANT DES DROITS LIQUIDES SUR LA BASE DE L' ANCIEN REGIME, L' ARTICLE 94, PARAGRAPHE 5, DU REGLEMENT N* 1408/71 DISPOSE QUE LES "DROITS DES INTERESSES QUI ONT OBTENU, ANTERIEUREMENT AU 1ER OCTOBRE 1972 OU A LA DATE D' APPLICATION DU PRESENT REGLEMENT SUR LE TERRITOIRE DE L' ETAT MEMBRE INTERESSE, LA LIQUIDATION D' UNE PENSION OU D' UNE RENTE PEUVENT ETRE REVISES A LEUR DEMANDE, COMPTE TENU DES DISPOSITIONS DE CE REGLEMENT ". COMME LA COUR L' A JUGE DANS SON ARRET DU 13 OCTOBRE 1976 ( SAIEVA, 32/76, REC . P . 1523 ), LES DISPOSITIONS TRANSITOIRES DU REGLEMENT N* 1408/71, PARMI LESQUELLES FIGURE L' ARTICLE 94, PARAGRAPHE 5, SONT INSPIREES DU PRINCIPE QUE LES PRESTATIONS ACCORDEES SELON LE REGIME DE L' ANCIEN REGLEMENT ET QUI SONT PLUS AVANTAGEUSES QUE LES PRESTATIONS RESULTANT DU NOUVEAU REGLEMENT NE SERONT PAS REDUITES . LE BUT DE CETTE DISPOSITION EST DONC DE DONNER A L' INTERESSE LE DROIT DE DEMANDER, EN SA FAVEUR, LA REVISION DE PRESTATIONS LIQUIDEES SOUS LE REGIME DE L' ANCIEN REGLEMENT . PAR CONSEQUENT, L' INSTITUTION COMPETENTE D' UN ETAT MEMBRE NE PEUT PAS SE SUBSTITUER A UN ASSURE POUR LA REVISION DES DROITS OBTENUS PAR CELUI-CI AVANT L' ENTREE EN VIGUEUR DU REGLEMENT N* 1408/71 .
| 0 |
862,029 |
32. Such legislation introduces an additional cost for stopovers made by aircraft or boats operated by persons having their tax domicile outside the territory of the region and established in other Member States, and thus creates an advantage for some categories of undertaking established in that territory (see Case C-353/89 Commission v Netherlands [1991] ECR I‑4069, paragraph 25; Case C-250/06 United Pan-Europe Communications Belgium and Others [2007] ECR I‑11135, paragraph 37; and Case C-212/06 Government of the French Community and Walloon Government [2008] ECR I‑1683, paragraph 50).
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44
In that regard, it should be noted that a temporary replacement of a worker in order to satisfy the employer’s temporary staffing requirements may, in principle, constitute an ‘objective ground’ within the meaning of clause 5(1)(a) of the framework agreement (see, to that effect, judgments of 23 April 2009, Angelidaki and Others, C‑378/07 to C‑380/07, EU:C:2009:250, paragraphs 101 and 102; of 26 January 2012, Kücük, C‑586/10, EU:C:2012:39, paragraph 30, and of 26 November 2014, Mascolo and Others, C‑22/13, C‑61/13, C‑63/13 and C‑418/13, EU:C:2014:2401, paragraph 91).
| 0 |
862,030 |
15. The Court has also pointed out that Member States retain their powers to organize their social security systems (see Poucet and Pistre , paragraph 6, and Case 238/82 Duphar v Netherlands [1984] ECR 523, paragraph 16).
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36. Indeed, a limitation of the compensation so designed enables passengers to be compensated easily and swiftly, yet without imposing a very heavy burden of damages on air carriers, which would be difficult to determine and to calculate, and would be liable to undermine, and even paralyse, the economic activity of those carriers.
| 0 |
862,031 |
170. It should be noted, however, that if the grounds of a decision of the General Court disclose an infringement of EU law but its operative part is shown to be well founded on other legal grounds, such infringement is not one that should bring about the annulment of that decision and it is appropriate to carry out a substitution of grounds (see, to that effect, judgments in Lestelle v Commission , C‑30/91 P, EU:C:1992:252, paragraph 28, and FIAMM and Others v Council and Commission , C‑120/06 P and C‑121/06 P, EU:C:2008:476, paragraph 187 and the case-law cited).
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28 In that connection, it should be emphasized that if the grounds of a judgment of the Court of First Instance reveal an infringement of Community law but the operative part appears well founded on other legal grounds, the appeal must be dismissed.
| 1 |
862,032 |
131. With regard specifically to those provisions, the Court has already held that they introduce preferential treatment the benefit of which can be obtained only if certain formalities are completed (see, to that effect, Case C-248/09 Pakora Pluss [2010] ECR I-7697, paragraphs 39 to 41).
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52. En effet, il suffit de constater à cet égard que l’indemnité de dépaysement prévue pour les fonctionnaires et agents des communautés, n’est pas de nature comparable à celle de l’indemnité de séjour journalière accordée à des experts nationaux occasionnellement occupés auprès de la Commission et ne relevant pas du statut.
| 0 |
862,033 |
20 The Court has consistently stated that a benefit may be regarded as a social security benefit in so far as it is granted, without any individual and discretionary assessment of personal needs, to recipients on the basis of a legally defined position and provided that it concerns one of the risks expressly listed in Article 4(1) of Regulation No 1408/71 (see, in particular, Case 249/83 Hoeckx [1985] ECR 973, paragraphs 12 to 14; Case 122/84 Scrivner [1985] ECR 1027, paragraphs 19 to 21; Case C-356/89 Newton [1991] ECR I-3017; and Case C-78/91 Hughes, cited above, paragraph 15). That list is exhaustive, so that a branch of social security not mentioned therein does not fall within that category even if it confers upon recipients a legally defined position entitling them to benefits (see, in particular, Case C-25/95 Otte [1996] ECR I-3745, paragraph 22).
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42. Toutefois, cette répartition de la compétence fiscale ne permet pas aux États membres d’appliquer des mesures contraires aux libertés de circulation garanties par le traité FUE. En effet, en ce qui concerne l’exercice du pouvoir d’imposition ainsi réparti dans le cadre de conventions bilatérales préventives de la double imposition, les États membres sont tenus de se conformer aux règles de l’Union (arrêts précités de Groot, point 94; Renneberg, points 50 et 51, ainsi que Beker, points 33 et 34).
| 0 |
862,034 |
38 As the Belgian State stated at the hearing, the harmonisation envisaged has not yet been achieved, in so far as the Sixth Directive, by virtue of Article 28(3)(b), unreservedly authorises the Member States to retain certain provisions of their national legislation predating the Sixth Directive which would, without that authorisation, be incompatible with that directive. Consequently, in so far as a Member State retains such provisions, it does not transpose the Sixth Directive and thus does not infringe either that directive or the general Community principles which Member States must, according to Klensch, comply with when implementing Community legislation.
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9 THAT FINDING IS BORNE OUT BY A CONSISTENT LINE OF CASES ( JUDGMENTS OF 19 OCTOBER 1977 IN JOINED CASES 117/76 AND 16/77 RUCKDESCHEL & CO . AND HANSE LAGERHAUS STROH & CO . V HAUPTZOLLAMT HAMBURG-ST . ANNEN ( 1977 ) ECR 1753 , AND IN JOINED CASES 124/76 AND 20/77 SA MOULINS ET HUILERIES DE PONT-A-MOUSSON V ONIC ( 1977 ) ECR 1795 ), IN WHICH THE COURT HELD THAT THE PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION LAID DOWN IN ARTICLE 40 ( 3 ) OF THE EEC TREATY IS MERELY A SPECIFIC ENUNCIATION OF THE GENERAL PRINCIPLE OF EQUALITY WHICH IS ONE OF THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNITY LAW . THAT PRINCIPLE REQUIRES THAT SIMILAR SITUATIONS SHALL NOT BE TREATED DIFFERENTLY UNLESS DIFFERENTIATION IS OBJECTIVELY JUSTIFIED .
| 1 |
862,035 |
6 REGARDING THE SECOND QUESTION THE COURT STATED THAT IT MUST BE CONSIDERED WHETHER THE DIFFERENTIATION , FOR THE PURPOSES OF GERMAN TAX LAW , MADE BY THE AUFWERTUNGSAUSGLEICHGESETZ BETWEEN AGRICULTURAL BREEDERS AND KEEPERS ON THE ONE HAND AND INDUSTRIAL BREEDERS AND KEEPERS ON THE OTHER , IS DISCRIMINATORY WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 40 ( 3 ) OF THE TREATY . THE COURT GAVE THE FOLLOWING GROUNDS FOR ANSWERING THIS QUESTION IN THE NEGATIVE ( PARA- GRAPH 17 ):
' ' IT APPEARS FROM THE CASE FILE INTER ALIA THAT , BECAUSE THEY USE FODDER WHICH IS MOSTLY THEIR OWN FARM PRODUCE , AGRICULTURAL LIVESTOCK BREEDERS AND KEEPERS WITHIN THE MEANING OF GERMAN TAX LAW ARE SUBJECT IN PARTICULAR TO THE RISKS INHERENT IN WORKING THE SOIL .
ON THE OTHER HAND , INDUSTRIAL LIVESTOCK BREEDERS AND KEEPERS WITHIN THE MEANING OF GERMAN TAX LAW ARE NOT EXPOSED TO THE SAME RISKS , AS THEY BUY THE FEEDING-STUFFS NEEDED FOR THEIR ANIMALS MOSTLY ON EITHER THE NATIONAL OR THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET , AND IF THEIR NATIONAL CURRENCY IS REVALUED THEY ARE ABLE TO OBTAIN THEM ABROAD AT ADVANTAGEOUS PRICES .
ACCORDINGLY , THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN AGRICULTURAL LIVESTOCK BREEDERS AND KEEPERS AND INDUSTRIAL LIVESTOCK BREEDERS AND KEEPERS , WHICH GERMAN TAX LAW MAKES BY LAYING DOWN A RATIO BETWEEN THE HEAD OF LIVESTOCK AND THE UTILIZED AGRICULTURAL AREA AND WHICH THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY ADOPTED AS AN OBJECTIVE , ALBEIT UNMODULATED , CRITERION AS REGARDS THE GRANTING OF THE AID WHICH IT IS EMPOWERED TO GRANT BY THE PROVISIONS OF REGULATION NO 2464/69 , CANNOT BE CLASSIFIED AS DISCRIMINATORY . ' '
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14. En second lieu, ainsi qu’il résulte d’une jurisprudence constante, les mesures interdites par l’article 63, paragraphe 1, TFUE, en tant que restrictions aux mouvements de capitaux, comprennent celles qui sont de nature à dissuader les non‑résidents de faire des investissements dans un État membre ou à dissuader les résidents dudit État membre d’en faire dans d’autres États (voir, notamment, arrêt du 8 novembre 2012, Commission/Finlande, C‑342/10, non encore publié au Recueil, point 28 et jurisprudence citée).
| 0 |
862,036 |
36. In the present case, by its first ground of appeal, Elf Aquitaine claims, not that the General Court denied the ‘criminal’ nature – within the meaning of the case-law based on Article 6 of the ECHR – of fines imposed under Article 81 EC, but essentially that it breached the fundamental rights accruing to Elf Aquitaine as a legal person held liable for an infringement attracting penalties which, in its view, are of a criminal nature. To the extent that, seen in that light, the present ground of appeal does not change the subject-matter of the proceedings before the General Court, it cannot be rejected as inadmissible (see, by analogy, Case C‑229/05 PKK and KNK v Council [2007] ECR I‑439, paragraphs 66 and 67).
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122. Secondly, it should be noted that, according to settled case-law, the principle of the protection of legitimate expectations is among the fundamental principles of the European Union (see, in particular, Case 112/80 Dürbeck [1981] ECR 1095, paragraph 48).
| 0 |
862,037 |
65. Il y a lieu de rappeler qu’il appartient à la Cour, dans chaque affaire et en fonction des circonstances de l’espèce dont elle se trouve saisie ainsi que du niveau de persuasion et de dissuasion qui lui paraît requis, d’arrêter les sanctions pécuniaires appropriées, notamment pour prévenir la répétition d’infractions analogues au droit de l’Union (voir arrêts Commission/Espagne, C‑184/11, EU:C:2014:316, point 58 et jurisprudence citée, ainsi que Commission/Italie, C‑196/13, EU:C:2014:2407, point 86).
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130 IT FOLLOWS FROM ALL THE CONSIDERATIONS SET FORTH ABOVE THAT IN THE MANUFACTURED TOBACCO SECTOR THE BELGIAN RULES ON CONSUMER TAXES AND PRICE CONTROLS AND THEIR APPLICATION PURSUANT TO THE REVENUE POLICY PURSUED BY THE STATE HAVE THE EFFECT OF MAKING IT PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR MANUFACTURERS AND IMPORTERS TO COMPETE IN SUCH A WAY THAT THERE WOULD BE AN EFFECT UPON THE AMOUNT OF THE RETAIL SELLING PRICE .
| 0 |
862,038 |
16. To reply to that question it should be recalled, at the outset, that the decisive criterion for the classification of goods for customs purposes is, in general, to be found in their objective characteristics and properties as defined in the wording of the relevant tariff heading and in the notes to the sections or chapters (see to that effect, inter alia, Case C-175/82 Dinter [1983] ECR 969, paragraph 10, Case C-233/88 Van de Kolk [1990] ECR I-265, paragraph 12, and Case C-400/05 B.A.S. Trucks BV [2007] ECR I-0000, paragraph 27).
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12 Those classification criteria comply with the case-law of the Court of Justice according to which, in the interests of legal certainty and ease of verification, goods must be classified on the basis of the objective characteristics and properties of products which can be ascertained when customs clearance is obtained ( see, inter alia, the judgment of 16 December 1976 in Case 38/76 Luma v Hauptzollamt Duisburg (( 1976 )) ECR 2027, paragraph 7 ).
| 1 |
862,039 |
32. In this connection, in accordance with the Court’s settled case-law, when interpreting the provisions of a directive account must be taken of the principle of the coherence of the Community legal order which requires secondary Community legislation to be interpreted in accordance with the general principles of Community law (see, to that effect, Case C-1/02 Borgmann [2004] ECR I‑3219, paragraph 30).
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84. Ladite réglementation, dans la mesure où elle s’applique, en Région flamande et dans les autres parties du territoire belge, à des spécimens nés et élevés en captivité en provenance d’autres États membres et relevant d’espèces qui ne sont pas mentionnées à l’annexe A du règlement n° 338/97, est de nature à entraver le commerce intracommunautaire en violation de l’article 28 CE, en ce qu’elle contient une interdiction de principe de l’importation, de la détention et de la vente desdits spécimens, bien qu’ils aient été légalement mis sur le marché dans un autre État membre (voir en ce sens, notamment, arrêts précités Tridon, point 49, ainsi que Nationale Raad van Dierenkwekers en Liefhebbers et Andibel, points 20 et 21).
| 0 |
862,040 |
14. Since it is settled case-law that that time-limit is decisive when establishing whether a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations (see, in particular, Case C-173/01 Commission v Greece [2002] ECR I-6129, paragraph 7, and Case C-483/01 Commission v France [2003] ECR I-4961, paragraph 22) the action brought by the Commission must be considered well founded.
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48 Next, it must be borne in mind that, in CIA Security, the finding of inapplicability as a legal consequence of breach of the obligation of notification was made in response to a request for a preliminary ruling arising from proceedings between competing undertakings based on national provisions prohibiting unfair trading.
| 0 |
862,041 |
61. Contrary to what Technopol appears to be suggesting, the fact that Article 12(b) of Regulation No 40/94 ensures that every trader may freely use indications relating to the characteristics of goods and services in no way limits the scope of Article 7(1)(c) of that regulation. On the contrary, that fact clearly discloses the need for the ground of refusal set out in Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation No 40/94 – which, moreover, is an absolute ground for refusal – to be actually applied to any sign which may designate a characteristic of the goods or the services in respect of which its registration as a mark is sought (see, to that effect, as regards Article 6 of Directive 89/104, Case C‑104/01 Libertel [2003] ECR I-3793, paragraphs 58 and 59, and, as regards Article 12 of Regulation No 40/94, Case C-64/02 P OHIM v Erpo Möbelwerk [2004] ECR I-10031, paragraph 45).
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55. Should the taxable person decide to retain capital goods entirely within his private assets, whether or not he uses them for both business and private purposes, no portion of the input VAT due or paid on the acquisition of the goods is deductible (Case C‑415/98 Bakcsi [2001] ECR I‑1831, paragraph 27). In that case, the use of those goods for the purposes of the business cannot be subject to VAT (see, to that effect, Bakcsi , paragraph 31).
| 0 |
862,042 |
123. Moreover, according to settled case-law, the Commission enjoys a wide discretion in setting the amount of fines and is not bound by assessments made by it in the past (see Dansk Rørindustri and Others v Commission , paragraphs 209 to 213, and Case C-510/06 P Archer Daniels Midland v Commission [2009] ECR I-0000, paragraph 82). It follows that the appellant cannot invoke the Commission’s decision-making policy before the Community judicature.
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35. However, as is clear from the language of both Article 2 of the Directive and the seventh recital in the preamble thereto, which refers to a " list [of] examples" of signs of which a trade mark may consist, that list is not exhaustive. Consequently, that provision, although it does not mention signs which are not in themselves capable of being perceived visually, such as sounds, does not, however, expressly exclude them (see, to that effect, regarding olfactory signs, Sieckmann , paragraph 44).
| 0 |
862,043 |
81
Thus, it is following a schematic interpretation of the relevant EU rules that the Court of Justice interpreted those rules as meaning that, as from 2000, the Commission is required to comply with a legal time limit when adopting a decision on financial corrections (see judgments of 4 September 2014, Spain v Commission, C‑192/13 P, EU:C:2014:2156, paragraphs 56 to 82, and of 4 September 2014, Spain v Commission, C‑197/13 P, EU:C:2014:2157, paragraphs 56 to 82).
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21 Here, it must be pointed out that Article 36 of the Treaty, whilst it allows the maintenance of restrictions on the free movement of goods justified on grounds of public morality, public policy or the protection of the health and life of animals, which are fundamental requirements recognised by Community law, cannot be applied where Community directives provide for harmonisation of the measures necessary to achieve the specific objective which would be furthered by reliance upon it (see, in particular, Case C-5/94 The Queen v MAFF ex parte Hedley Lomas [1996] ECR I-2553, paragraph 18). Its application is also excluded when the need to protect consumers arises.
| 0 |
862,044 |
61. It must be observed here that an increase in the commercial activity of an operator who has been granted exclusive rights in the field of games of chance and a substantial increase in the income received from those games require particular attention in the examination of whether the legislation at issue is consistent and systematic, and hence whether it is appropriate for pursuing the objectives recognised by the Court’s case-law. According to that case-law, the financing of activities in the public interest by means of income from games of chance must not be the real aim of a restrictive policy in that sector, but can only be regarded as an incidental beneficial consequence (see, inter alia, Case C‑275/92 Schindler [1994] ECR I‑1039, paragraphs 57 and 60; Case C‑124/97 Läärä and Others [1999] ECR I‑6067, paragraphs 32 and 37; Case C‑67/98 Zenatti [1999] ECR I‑7289, paragraphs 35 and 36; and Gambelli and Others , paragraphs 61 and 62).
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47. The answer to the fourth question must therefore be that the obligation on the Member States to ensure that hunting of birds is carried out only in ‘small numbers’, in accordance with Article 9(1)(c) of the Directive, requires that the administrative procedures provided for are organised in such a way that both the decisions of the competent authorities authorising hunting derogations and the manner in which those decisions are applied are subject to effective control exercised in a timely manner.
Costs
| 0 |
862,045 |
13 As the Court has consistently held (see, most recently, the judgments in Commission v France, cited above, paragraph 15; Commission v Italy, cited above, paragraph 18; and Commission v Greece, cited above, paragraph 18), such restrictions come within the scope of Article 59 if the application of the national legislation to foreign persons providing services is not justified by overriding reasons relating to the public interest or if the requirements embodied in that legislation are already satisfied by the rules imposed on those persons in the Member State in which they are established.
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48. That obligation to cooperate means that the undertaking may not evade requests for production of documents on the ground that by complying with them it would be required to give evidence against itself.
| 0 |
862,046 |
78. First of all, it is to be remembered that it is settled case-law that, during the period prescribed for transposition of a directive, the Member States to which it is addressed must refrain from taking any measures liable seriously to compromise the attainment of the result prescribed by that directive (Case C‑129/96 Inter-Environnement Wallonie [1997] ECR I‑7411, paragraph 45; Case C‑14/02 ATRAL [2003] ECR I‑4431, paragraph 58; and Joined Cases C-261/07 a nd C-299/07 VTB-VAB and Galatea [2009] ECR I-2949, paragraph 38). Such an obligation to refrain owed by all the national authorities (see Case C-212/04 Adeneler and Others [2006] ECR I‑6057, paragraph 122 and the case-law cited) must be understood as referring to the adoption of any measure, general or specific, liable to produce such a compromising effect.
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49. Consequently, the rules at issue constitute a restriction on the movement of capital for the purposes of Article 56 EC. Since the United Kingdom Government expressly stated that it did not wish to rely on any justification based on possible overriding requirements relating to the general interest, there is no need to examine whether the rules can be justified on that basis.
| 0 |
862,047 |
43. In that regard, it should be borne in mind that while budgetary considerations may underlie a Member State’s choice of social policy and influence the nature or scope of the social protection measures which it wishes to adopt, they do not in themselves constitute an aim pursued by that policy (see, to that effect, Case C‑187/00 Kutz-Bauer [2003] ECR I‑2741, paragraph 59, and Case C‑196/02 Nikoloudi [2005] ECR I‑1789, paragraph 53). Reasons of a purely economic nature cannot constitute overriding reasons in the public interest justifying a restriction of a fundamental freedom guaranteed by the Treaty (see, by analogy, Case C‑109/04 Kranemann [2005] ECR I‑2421, paragraph 34 and the case-law cited, and Case C‑384/08 Attanasio Group [2010] ECR I‑2055, paragraph 55).
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42
In adopting those provisions, the Commission therefore amended an essential element of Directive 2003/87.
| 0 |
862,048 |
11 It has therefore given that concept a sufficiently flexible interpretation in keeping with the objective of the directive, which is to safeguard employees in the event of a transfer of their undertaking, and has held that the directive is applicable wherever, in the context of contractual relations, there is a change in the natural or legal person who is responsible for carrying on the business and who incurs the obligations of an employer towards employees of the undertaking (see, most recently, the judgment in Case 101/87 Bork International v Foreningen af Arbejdsledere i Danmark [1988] ECR 3057, paragraph 13).
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36 In those circumstances, the mere fact that a Member State has opted for a system of protection which differs from that adopted by another Member State cannot affect the assessment of the need for, and proportionality of, the provisions enacted to that end. Those provisions must be assessed solely by reference to the objectives pursued by the national authorities of the Member State concerned and the level of protection which they are intended to provide.
| 0 |
862,049 |
20. In the first place, that the Council of the European Union adopted Directive 2000/78 on the basis of Article 13 EC, and the Court has held that that directive does not itself lay down the principle of equal treatment in the field of employment and occupation, which derives from various international instruments and from the constitutional traditions common to the Member States, but has the sole purpose of laying down, in that field, a general framework for combating discrimination on various grounds including age (see Mangold , paragraph 74).
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77. Those functions include not only the essential function of the trade mark, which is to guarantee to consumers the origin of the goods or services (‘the function of indicating origin’), but also its other functions, in particular that of guaranteeing the quality of the goods or services in question and those of communication, investment or advertising ( L’Oréal and Others , paragraph 58).
| 0 |
862,050 |
18 The Court has already held that Directive 64/432 brought about complete harmonization of the animal-health measures which Member States may adopt in the field of intra-Community trade in bovine animals and swine and that, consequently, Member States of destination have no power to adopt, in the field covered by the directive, measures other than those exhaustively laid down therein (Case C-304/88 Commission v Belgium [1990] ECR I-2801, paragraphs 16 and 19).
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16 In this regard, it must be pointed out that Council Directive 64/432 brought about complete harmonization of the animal-health measures which Member States may adopt in the field of intra-Community trade in bovine animals and swine .
| 1 |
862,051 |
61. En effet, un État membre ne saurait invoquer l’existence d’un avantage concédé de manière unilatérale par un autre État membre, en l’occurrence l’État membre dans lequel M. Imfeld travaille et perçoit l’intégralité de ses revenus, afin d’échapper aux obligations qui lui incombent en vertu du traité, notamment au titre des dispositions de celui-ci relatives à la liberté d’établissement (voir en ce sens, notamment, arrêts du 8 novembre 2007, Amurta, C‑379/05, Rec. p. I‑9569, point 78, ainsi que du 11 septembre 2008, Eckelkamp e.a., C‑11/07, Rec. p. I‑6845, point 69, et Arens-Sikken, C‑43/07, Rec. p. I‑6887, point 66).
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73. In those circumstances, it cannot be argued that the scope of the limitation, by way of derogation, on the Court’s jurisdiction envisaged in the final sentence of the second subparagraph of Article 24(1) TEU and in Article 275 TFEU goes so far as to preclude the Court from having jurisdiction to interpret and apply a provision such as Article 218 TFEU which does not fall within the CFSP, even though it lays down the procedure on the basis of which an act falling within the CFSP has been adopted.
| 0 |
862,052 |
62. It is settled case-law that the essential function of a trade mark is to guarantee the identity of the origin of the marked goods or service to the consumer or end user by enabling him, without any possibility of confusion, to distinguish the goods or services from others which have another origin (see Canon , paragraph 28, and Case C-517/99 Merz & Krell [2001] ECR I-6959, paragraph 22). A trade mark must distinguish the goods or services concerned as originating from a particular undertaking. In that connection, regard must be had both to the ordinary use of trade marks as a badge of origin in the sectors concerned and to the perception of the relevant public.
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48 IN THE ABSENCE OF ANY DIRECTIVE ISSUED UNDER ARTICLE 57 FOR THE PURPOSE OF HARMONIZING THE NATIONAL PROVISIONS RELATING, IN PARTICULAR, TO PROFESSIONS SUCH AS THAT OF AVOCAT, THE PRACTICE OF SUCH PROFESSIONS REMAINS GOVERNED BY THE LAW OF THE VARIOUS MEMBER STATES .
| 0 |
862,053 |
28. It should be noted at the outset that, although direct taxation falls within their competence, Member States must none the less exercise that competence consistently with Community law (Case C-80/94 Wielockx [1995] ECR I-2493, paragraph 16; Case C-264/96 ICI [1998] ECR I-4695, paragraph 19; Case C‑311/97 Royal Bank of Scotland [1999] ECR I-2651, paragraph 19; Case C‑35/98 Verkooijen [2000] ECR I-4071, paragraph 32, and Lindman , paragraph 18).
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23 In the light of the foregoing the objection of inadmissibility raised by the Commission must be rejected .
Substance
| 0 |
862,054 |
40. Yet other directives require the Member States to obtain very precise and specific results after a certain period (see, in that regard, Case C‑56/90 Commission v United Kingdom [1993] ECR I-4109, paragraphs 42 to 44; Case C‑268/00 Commission v Netherlands [2002] ECR I‑2995, paragraphs 12 to 14; and Case C‑60/01 Commission v France , paragraph 28).
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32. For companies, the centre of main interests is presumed, according to the second sentence of Article 3(1) of the Regulation, to be the place of the company’s registered office. That presumption and the reference in recital 13 in the preamble to the Regulation to the place where the debtor conducts the administration of his interests reflect the European Union legislature’s intention to attach greater importance to the place in which the company has its central administration as the criterion for jurisdiction ( Interedil , paragraph 48).
| 0 |
862,055 |
38 As it stands at present, Community law does not contain any provision designed to prohibit the effects of double taxation occurring in the case of charges, such as that in issue in the main proceedings, which are governed by independent national legislation, and, while the elimination of such effects is desirable in the interests of the free movement of goods, it may none the less result only from the harmonisation of national systems (see, along these lines, Case 142/77 Larsen and Kjerulff [1978] ECR 1543, paragraphs 33 to 35, and Scharbatke, cited above, paragraphs 14 and 15).
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27. In that regard, it is necessary to recall that the objective of Directive 92/85 is to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding.
| 0 |
862,056 |
31. The term ‘supply of services’, within the meaning of the Sixth Directive and the amended Sixth Directive, must, in the light of its objective nature, be interpreted without regard to the purpose or results of the transactions concerned and without its being necessary for the tax authorities to carry out inquiries to determine the intention of the taxable person (see judgment in Newey , C‑653/11, EU:C:2013:409, paragraph 41 and the case-law cited).
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51. À titre liminaire, il convient de rappeler que la directive 89/106 a pour objet principal d’éliminer les obstacles aux échanges en créant des conditions permettant aux produits de construction d’être librement commercialisés à l’intérieur de l’Union. À cette fin, cette directive précise les exigences essentielles auxquelles doivent satisfaire les produits de construction et qui sont mises en œuvre par des normes harmonisées et des normes nationales de transposition, par des agréments techniques européens ainsi que par des spécifications techniques nationales reconnues au niveau de l’Union (arrêt Elenca, C‑385/10, EU:C:2012:634, point 15 et jurisprudence citée).
| 0 |
862,057 |
27. Whilst assessment of the compatibility of aid measures with the common market falls within the exclusive competence of the Commission, subject to review by the European Union Courts, it is for the national courts to ensure that the rights of individuals are safeguarded where the obligation to give prior notification of State aid to the Commission pursuant to Article 88(3) EC has been infringed ( van Calster and Others , paragraph 75, and Transalpine Ölleitung in Österreich and Others , paragraph 38).
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66. That interpretation is, moreover, borne out by the objective and overall scheme of Directive 93/13.
| 0 |
862,058 |
22. The possibility of a national court ruling on the invalidity of a Community act is likewise incompatible with the necessary coherence of the system of judicial protection instituted by the EC Treaty. It is important to note in that regard that references for a preliminary ruling on validity constitute, on the same basis as actions for annulment, a means of reviewing the legality of Community acts. By Articles 230 EC and 241 EC, on the one hand, and Article 234 EC, on the other, the Treaty established a complete system of legal remedies and procedures designed to ensure review of the legality of acts of the institutions and has entrusted such review to the Community Courts (see Case 294/83 Parti écologiste ‘Les Verts’ v Parliament [1986] ECR 1339, paragraph 23; Foto-Frost , paragraph 16; and Case C‑50/00 P Unión de Pequeños Agricultores [2002] ECR I‑6677, paragraph 40).
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45 However, there is nothing in Regulation No 2081/92 to indicate that such geographical indications of source cannot be protected under the national legislation of a Member State.
| 0 |
862,059 |
40 With regard more particularly to the right to property, which, according to the plaintiff in the main proceedings, has been infringed, the Court held, in paragraphs 28 and 29 of Irish Farmers' Association, cited above, that the regulations in question form part of a body of legislation intended to remedy the surpluses on the milk market and therefore correspond to aims pursued by the Community in the general interest and that the conversion into a definitive reduction without compensation does not affect the actual substance of that right.
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55. The apportionment of the burden of proof under Article 5(3) of Directive 1999/44 is, in accordance with Article 7 of that directive, binding in nature both for the parties, who may not derogate from it by means of an agreement, and for the Member States, which must ensure that it is complied with. It follows that that rule relating to the burden of proof must be applied even though it has not been expressly relied on by the consumer who may benefit from it.
| 0 |
862,060 |
58. Even if judgments delivered under Article 226 EC were to have the same effects as those delivered under Article 234 EC and, therefore, considerations of legal certainty might, exceptionally, make it necessary to limit their temporal effects (see Case C‑178/05 Commission v Greece [2007] ECR I‑4185, paragraph 67; Case C‑475/07 Commission v Poland [2009] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 61; and Case C‑559/07 Commission v Greece [2009] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 78), it need merely be stated that the Republic of Finland has made no attempt, either in its written pleadings or at the hearing, to demonstrate that there is any risk of serious economic repercussions.
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16 THE TWO SERVICES IN QUESTION ARE ALSO PROVIDED FOR REMUNERATION WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 60 OF THE TREATY . FIRSTLY, THE CABLE NETWORK OPERATORS ARE PAID, IN THE FORM OF THE FEES WHICH THEY CHARGE THEIR SUBSCRIBERS, FOR THE SERVICE WHICH THEY PROVIDE FOR THE BROADCASTERS . IT IS IRRELEVANT THAT THE BROADCASTERS GENERALLY DO NOT THEMSELVES PAY THE CABLE NETWORK OPERATORS FOR RELAYING THEIR PROGRAMMES . ARTICLE 60 DOES NOT REQUIRE THE SERVICE TO BE PAID FOR BY THOSE FOR WHOM IT IS PERFORMED . SECONDLY, THE BROADCASTERS ARE PAID BY THE ADVERTISERS FOR THE SERVICE WHICH THEY PERFORM FOR THEM IN SCHEDULING THEIR ADVERTISEMENTS .
| 0 |
862,061 |
29. As regards the concept of ‘communication to the public’ within the meaning of Article 8(2) of Directive 92/100, codified by Directive 2006/115, the Court held in Case C-135/10 SCF [2012] ECR I-0000, paragraph 76, that it requires an individual assessment. The same applies as regards the identity of the user and the question of the use of the phonogram at issue ( SCF , paragraph 78).
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65. S’agissant du second moyen, il suffit de relever qu’il est dirigé contre des motifs surabondants de l’arrêt attaqué. Or, des griefs dirigés contre des motifs surabondants d’un arrêt du Tribunal doivent être rejetés d’emblée, puisque ceux-ci ne sauraient entraîner son annulation (voir en ce sens, notamment, arrêts du 28 octobre 2004, van den Berg/Conseil et Commission, C‑164/01 P, Rec. p. I‑10225, point 60, et du 28 juin 2005, Dansk Rørindustri e.a./Commission, C‑189/02 P, C‑202/02 P, C‑205/02 P à C‑208/02 P et C‑213/02 P, Rec. p. I‑5425, point 148, ainsi que ordonnance du 3 octobre 2012, Cooperativa Vitivinícola Arousana/OHMI, C‑649/11 P, point 55).
| 0 |
862,062 |
35
In this connection, the Court held that the condition of residence laid down in the Law on State financial aid for higher education studies, as amended by the Law of 26 July 2010, was appropriate for attaining the objective in the public interest, acknowledged at the level of the European Union, of promoting higher education and of significantly increasing the proportion of Luxembourg residents who hold a higher education degree (judgment of 20 June 2013, Giersch and Others, C‑20/12, EU:C:2013:411, paragraphs 53, 56 and 68).
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29 As regards, first of all, the question whether the value of the contract in question exceeds the threshold laid down in Directives 92/50 and 93/36, it should be borne in mind that Article 177 of the Treaty is based on a clear separation of functions between the national courts and the Court of Justice, which means that, when ruling on the interpretation or validity of Community provisions, the Court of Justice is empowered to do so only on the basis of the facts which the national court puts before it (see, in particular, Case C-30/93 AC-ATEL Electronics Vertriebs v Hauptzollamt München-Mitte [1994] ECR I-2305, paragraph 16).
| 0 |
862,063 |
50. On the other hand, projects which appear in Annex II must only be subject to such an assessment if they are likely to have significant effects on the environment and, in that regard, Directive 85/337 allows the Member States some discretion. Nevertheless, the limits of that discretion are to be found in the obligation on the Member States, set out in Article 2(1) of Directive 85/337, to make projects likely, by virtue inter alia of their nature, size or location, to have significant effects on the environment subject to an assessment (see, to that effect, Case C‑72/95 Kraaijeveld and Others [1996] ECR I‑5403, paragraph 50, and Case C‑486/04 Commission v Italy [2006] ECR I‑11025, paragraph 53).
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27. Therefore, it is not permissible to equate the two terms.
| 0 |
862,064 |
26 The Court has also held that that first paragraph of Article 7 of Decision No 1/80 is designed to promote family unity in the host Member State, in order to facilitate the employment and residence of Turkish workers duly registered as belonging to the labour force of the Member State concerned, by first allowing family members who have been authorised to join the migrant worker to be present with him and by then consolidating their position with the right to work as employed persons in that State (Kadiman, paragraphs 34, 35 and 36).
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33. Conformément à la règle générale énoncée à l’article 73 de la directive TVA, la base d’imposition pour la livraison d’un bien ou la prestation d’un service, effectuées à titre onéreux, est constituée par la contrepartie réellement reçue à cet effet par l’assujetti. Cette contrepartie constitue la valeur subjective, à savoir réellement perçue, et non une valeur estimée selon des critères objectifs (voir, notamment, arrêts du 5 février 1981, Coöperatieve Aardappelenbewaarplaats, 154/80, Rec. p. 445, point 13, et du 26 avril 2012, Balkan and Sea Properties et Provadinvest, C‑621/10 et C‑129/11, point 43).
| 0 |
862,065 |
112. It is therefore important that mechanisms be established which ensure the creation of a genuine market for certificates in which supply can match demand, reaching some kind of balance, so that it is actually possible for the relevant suppliers to obtain certificates under fair terms (see, to that effect, Ålands Vindkraft , EU:C:2014:2037, paragraph 114).
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69. The application of Community legislation cannot be extended to cover abusive practices by economic operators, that is to say transactions carried out not in the context of normal commercial operations, but solely for the purpose of wrongfully obtaining advantages provided for by Community law (see, to that effect, Case 125/76 Cremer [1977] ECR 1593, paragraph 21; Case C-8/92 General Milk Products [1993] ECR I-779, paragraph 21; and Emsland-Stärke , paragraph 51).
| 0 |
862,066 |
30
The Court has held, moreover, that the scope of the concept of ‘use of vehicles’ does not depend on the characteristics of the terrain on which the motor vehicle is used (judgment of 28 November 2017, Rodrigues de Andrade, C‑514/16, EU:C:2017:908, paragraph 35).
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23. The Commission alone is competent to decide whether it is appropriate to bring proceedings against a Member State for failure to fulfil its obligations and to determine the conduct or omission attributable to the Member State concerned on the basis of which those proceedings should be brought. It may therefore ask the Court to find that, in not having achieved, in a specific case, the result intended by the directive, a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations (Joined Cases C‑20/01 and C‑28/01 Commission v Germany [2003] ECR I‑3609, paragraph 30, and the case-law cited). Accordingly, the repeal of Law 716/1977 and the adoption of a new law before expiry of the time-limit set in the reasoned opinion do not render the present action devoid of purpose.
| 0 |
862,067 |
17. It is also apparent from settled case-law that an analysis of the definitions of taxable person and economic activities shows that the scope of the term economic activities is very wide, 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 (see, inter alia, Case C‑223/03 University of Huddersfield [2006] ECR I-1751, paragraph 47; T-Mobile Austria and Others , paragraph 35; and Hutchison 3G and Others , paragraph 29).
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36. Contrairement à ce qui était le cas dans les affaires ayant donné lieu aux arrêts précités Cadbury Schweppes et Cadbury Schweppes Overseas (points 31 et 32) ainsi que Test Claimants in the Thin Cap Group Litigation (points 28 à 33), que le Royaume d’Espagne invoque au soutien de son analyse mentionnée au point 35 du présent arrêt, la législation nationale en cause dans la présente affaire n’a pas vocation à s’appliquer aux seules participations permettant d’exercer une influence certaine sur les décisions d’une société et de déterminer les activités de celle-ci (voir, par analogie, arrêt Holböck, précité, points 23 et 24).
| 0 |
862,068 |
21. National legislation which places certain of the nationals of the Member State concerned at a disadvantage simply because they have exercised their freedom to move and to reside in another Member State is a restriction on the freedoms conferred by Article 18(1) EC on every citizen of the Union (see Case C-406/04 De Cuyper [2006] ECR I-6947, paragraph 39, and Case C-499/06 Nerkowska [2008] ECR I-0000, paragraph 32).
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76. Where the company vehicle is intended to be used essentially in Denmark on a permanent basis or where it is in fact used in that manner, the situation is comparable to that at issue in Cura Anlagen .
| 0 |
862,069 |
61. Such authorities, in view of their composition, cannot be regarded as impartial and neutral. Indeed, that majority participation of representatives of private interests could lead those representatives to obstruct the access of other operators to the market concerned and, in any event, because such operators are obliged to submit to the determination of their potential competitors as regards their personal and professional qualities, such an authority involves a situation of unequal conditions of competition and lack of objectivity and impartiality, inconsistent with a system of undistorted competition, such as that laid down by the law of the Union (see, by analogy, Case C‑49/07 MOTOE [2008] ECR I‑4863, paragraphs 51 and 52 and the case‑law cited, and Case C‑169/07 Hartlauer [2009] ECR I‑1721, paragraph 51 and case‑law cited).
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39. For the sake of completeness, it must be noted that, as recitals 3, 21 and 24 in the preamble to Regulation No 1782/2003 make clear, environmental protection forms part of the objectives of the single payment scheme. The Court has also held that environmental protection, one of the essential objectives of the European Union, must be regarded as forming part of the common agricultural policy (Case C-428/07 Horvath [2009] ECR I-6355, paragraph 29). Moreover, Article 2 point (1) of Regulation No 796/2004 expressly provides that arable land, and consequently agricultural areas pursuant to Article 2(a) of Regulation No 795/2004, is land maintained in good agricultural and environmental condition within the meaning of Article 5 of Regulation No 1782/2003.
| 0 |
862,070 |
22 The Explanatory Notes drawn up by the Commission, as regards the CN, and by the Customs Cooperation Council as regards the HS, significantly contribute to interpretation of the scope of the various customs headings without, however, having binding legal force (Laboratoires Sarget, paragraph 16).
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105 Such a condition can allow an adequate, balanced and permanent supply of high-quality hospital treatment to be maintained on the national territory and the financial stability of the sickness insurance system to be assured.
| 0 |
862,071 |
54. Furthermore, it is apparent from both Article 9(3) of Directive 2003/87 and the travaux préparatoires to that directive that the power granted to the Commission consists only a power to review the conformity of the NAPs with the criteria laid down in Annex III to Directive 2003/87 and not a power to substitute or to harmonise which would include the power to fix a maximum quantity of greenhouse gas emission allowances to be allocated (Case C‑504/09 P Commission v Poland [2012] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 80, and Case C‑505/09 P Commission v Estonia [2012] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 82). The Commission therefore has the power only to review that conformity and to reject NAPs if they are incompatible with those criteria and those provisions.
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24. It is however also accepted that a taxable person has a right to deduct even where there is no direct and immediate link between a particular input transaction and an output transaction or transactions giving rise to the right to deduct, where the costs of the services in question are part of his general costs and are, as such, components of the price of the goods or services which he supplies. Such costs do have a direct and immediate link with the taxable person’s economic activity as a whole (see, inter alia, Midland Bank , paragraphs 23 and 31, and Kretztechnik , paragraph 36).
| 0 |
862,072 |
17. As regards the former possibility, which is at issue in the main proceedings, the Court has made it clear that, while the Member States have a certain freedom to manoeuvre in determining the conditions for the refund of excess VAT, those conditions cannot undermine the principle of neutrality of the VAT tax system by making the taxable person bear the burden of the VAT in whole or in part. In particular, such conditions must enable the taxable person, in appropriate circumstances, to recover the entirety of the credit arising from that excess VAT. This implies that the refund is made within a reasonable period of time by a payment in liquid funds or equivalent means, and that, in any event, the method of refund adopted must not entail any financial risk for the taxable person. (see Commission v Italy , paragraphs 32 to 34).
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65
Any other approach would risk undermining the efficiency of EU trade defence measures each time the EU institutions are faced with non-cooperation in an investigation to establish whether there has been circumvention (judgment of 4 September 2014, Simon, Evers & Co., C‑21/13, EU:C:2014:2154, paragraph 37).
| 0 |
862,073 |
173. Furthermore, the list of abusive practices contained in Article 82 EC is not exhaustive, so that the practices there mentioned are merely examples of abuses of a dominant position. The list of abusive practices contained in that provision does not exhaust the methods of abusing a dominant position prohibited by the Treaty (see British Airways v Commission , paragraph 57 and the case-law cited).
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57. Concerning, first, the plea that the Court of First Instance wrongly failed to base its argument on the criteria in subparagraph (b) of the second paragraph of Article 82 EC in assessing whether the bonus schemes at issue were abusive, the list of abusive practices contained in Article 86 EC is not exhaustive, so that the practices there mentioned are merely examples of abuses of a dominant position (see, to that effect, Case C‑333/94 P Tetra Pak v Commission [1996] ECR I‑5951, paragraph 37). According to consistent case-law, the list of abusive practices contained in that provision does not exhaust the methods of abusing a dominant position prohibited by the EC Treaty (Case 6/72 Europemballage and Continental Can v Commission [1973] ECR 215, paragraph 26; Joined Cases C‑395/96 P and C‑396/96 P Compagnie maritime belge transports a.o. v Commission [2000] ECR I‑1365, paragraph 112).
| 1 |
862,074 |
16. However, the Court may, of its own motion, on a proposal from the Advocate General or at the request of the parties, reopen the oral procedure, in accordance with Article 61 of its Rules of Procedure, if it considers that it lacks sufficient information, or that the case must be dealt with on the basis of an argument which has not been debated between the parties (see Case C-309/99 Wouters and Others [2002] ECR I-1577, paragraph 42; Case C-434/02 Arnold André [2004] ECR I‑11825, paragraph 27; and Case C-210/03 Swedish Match [2004] ECR I-11893, paragraph 25).
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41 The same is true of the loans at reduced rates of interest and the reduction in social security charges, because they also enabled CBSF to avoid having to bear costs which would normally have had to be met out of the undertaking' s own financial resources, and thereby prevented market forces from having their normal effect .
| 0 |
862,075 |
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).
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31. The concept of the centre of main interests is peculiar to the Regulation. Therefore, it has an autonomous meaning and must therefore be interpreted in a uniform way, independently of national legislation.
| 0 |
862,076 |
59. However, it cannot be denied that the withdrawal of that advantage constitutes a clear disadvantage in terms of cash-flow. In this connection, the Court has repeatedly held that the exclusion of a cash-flow advantage in a cross-border situation where it is available in an equivalent domestic situation is a restriction on the freedom of establishment (see, to that effect, inter alia, Joined Cases C-397/98 and C-410/98 Metallgesellschaft and Others [2001] ECR I-1727, paragraphs 44, 54 and 76; Case C-436/00 X and Y [2002] ECR I-10829, paragraphs 36 to 38; Case C-446/03 Marks & Spencer [2005] ECR I-10837, paragraph 32; and Case C-347/04 Rewe Zentralfinanz [2007] ECR I-2647, paragraph 29).
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16. The explanatory notes drawn up by the European Commission as regards the CN and by the World Customs Organisation as regards the HS are an important aid to the interpretation of the scope of the various tariff headings but do not have legally binding force (Case C‑250/05 Turbon International [2006] ECR I‑10531, paragraph 16, and Data I/O , paragraph 30).
| 0 |
862,077 |
En effet, la Cour a déjà jugé que, s’il est légitime pour un État membre d’exiger, aux fins de l’octroi de certains avantages fiscaux, qu’un lien suffisamment étroit existe entre les organismes qu’il reconnaît comme poursuivant certains de ses objectifs d’intérêt général et les activités qu’ils exercent, celui-ci ne saurait toutefois réserver le bénéfice de tels avantages aux seuls organismes établis sur son territoire et dont les activités sont susceptibles de le décharger de certaines de ses responsabilités (arrêts du 27 janvier 2009, Persche, C‑318/07, EU:C:2009:33, point 44, et du 10 février 2011 Missionswerk Werner Heukelbach, C‑25/10, EU:C:2011:65, point 30).
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141. European Union law does not lay down any such rule ( Commission v Siemens Österreich and Others and Siemens Transmission & Distribution and Others v Commission , paragraphs 70 and 71). Moreover, that rule relates, in any event, only to the internal allocation of liability for payment of the fine among those jointly and severally liable, once the fine has been paid to the Commission, not to the determination, from the external perspective, of joint and several liability, of the respective amounts that the Commission may claim from the legal entities that formed part of each of the undertakings which succeeded one another during the infringement period.
| 0 |
862,078 |
31 In view of the objective character of the term economic activities, the fact that the activity in question consists in the performance of duties which are conferred and regulated by law in the public interest is irrelevant. Indeed, Article 6 of the Sixth Directive expressly provides that certain activities carried on in pursuance of the law are to be subject to the system of VAT (Commission v Netherlands, cited above, paragraph 10).
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40. It follows that the principle of res judicata does not preclude recognition of the principle of State liability for the decision of a court adjudicating at last instance.
| 0 |
862,079 |
55. The as-efficient-competitor test has been specifically applied by the Court to low-pricing practices in the form of selective prices or predatory prices (see, in respect of selective prices, judgment in Post Danmark , C‑209/10, EU:C:2012:172, paragraphs 28 to 35, and in respect of predatory prices, judgments in AKZO v Commission , C‑62/86, EU:C:1991:286, paragraphs 70 to 73, and France Télécom v Commission , C‑202/07 P, EU:C:2009:214, paragraphs 107 and 108), and margin squeeze (judgment in TeliaSonera Sverige , C‑52/09, EU:C:2011:83, paragraphs 40 to 46).
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39
It is clear from the wording of heading 6212 of the CN that that heading includes ‘brassières, girdles, corsets, braces, suspenders, garters and similar articles and parts thereof, whether or not knitted or crocheted’. Furthermore, subheading 6212 20 00 of the CN specifically refers, in the context of heading 6212 thereof, to ‘Girdles and panty girdles’.
| 0 |
862,080 |
12 The Court has consistently held that, in view of the fundamental importance of the principle of equal treatment, the exclusion of social security matters from the scope of the directive provided for in Article 1(2) must be interpreted strictly (see the judgments in Case 151/84 Roberts v Tate & Lyle [1986] ECR 703, paragraph 35, and in Case 152/84 Marshall v Southampton and South-West Hampshire Area Health Authority [1986] ECR 723, paragraph 36).
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24 THE FACT THAT THE APPLICANT HAS REDUCED ITS CLAIM TO NOMINAL DAMAGES DOES NOT RELIEVE IT OF PROVIDING CONCLUSIVE PROOF OF THE DAMAGE SUFFERED .
| 0 |
862,081 |
14 Such an interpretation must apply a fortiori with respect to a rule of jurisdiction, such as that contained in Article 14 of the Convention, which allows a consumer, within the meaning of Article 13 of the Convention, to sue the defendant in the courts of the Contracting State in which the plaintiff is domiciled. Apart from the cases expressly provided for, the Convention appears hostile towards the attribution of jurisdiction to the courts of the plaintiff's domicile (see Case C-220/88 Dumez France and Tracoba [1990] ECR I-49, paragraphs 16 and 19, and Shearson Lehman Hutton, paragraph 17).
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30 IN PURSUING THOSE OBJECTIVES , THE COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS MUST SECURE THE PERMANENT HARMONIZATION MADE NECESSARY BY ANY CONFLICTS BETWEEN THESE OBJECTIVES TAKEN INDIVIDUALLY AND , WHERE NECESSARY , ALLOW ANY ONE OF THEM TEMPORARY PRIORITY IN ORDER TO SATISFY THE DEMANDS OF THE ECONOMIC FACTORS OR CONDITIONS IN VIEW OF WHICH THEIR DECISIONS ARE MADE .
| 0 |
862,082 |
55. The Court has already held that Article 8(3) of Directive 2004/48, read in conjunction with Article 15(1) of Directive 2002/58, does not preclude Member States from imposing an obligation to disclose to private persons personal data in order to enable them to bring civil proceedings for copyright infringements, but nor does it require those Member States to lay down such an obligation (see Promusicae , paragraphs 54 and 55, and order in LSG-Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung von Leistungsschutzrechten , paragraph 29).
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107. In particular, the Court of Justice has had occasion to state that advantages given in the form of a State guarantee can entail an additional burden on the State (see, to that effect, Ecotrade , paragraph 43, and Case C-275/10 Residex Capital IV [2011] ECR I-0000, paragraphs 39 to 42).
| 0 |
862,083 |
32
In that regard, while a mere finding of disparities between national rules is not sufficient to justify having recourse to Article 114 TFEU, it is otherwise where there are differences between the laws, regulations or administrative provisions of the Member States which are such as to obstruct the fundamental freedoms and thus have a direct effect on the functioning of the internal market (see, to that effect, judgments in Germany v Parliament and Council, C‑376/98, EU:C:2000:544, paragraphs 84 and 95; British American Tobacco (Investments) and Imperial Tobacco, C‑491/01, EU:C:2002:741, paragraphs 59 and 60; Arnold André, C‑434/02, EU:C:2004:800, paragraph 30; Swedish Match, C‑210/03, EU:C:2004:802, paragraph 29; Germany v Parliament and Council, C‑380/03, EU:C:2006:772, paragraph 37; and Vodafone and Others, C‑58/08, EU:C:2010:321, paragraph 32).
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30. En deuxième lieu, ainsi que l’a relevé M me l’avocat général au point 48 de ses conclusions, aux fins d’apprécier le point de savoir si un acte réglementaire comporte des mesures d’exécution, il y a lieu de s’attacher à la position de la personne invoquant le droit de recours au titre de l’article 263, quatrième alinéa, dernier membre de phrase, TFUE. Il est donc sans pertinence de savoir si l’acte en question comporte des mesures d’exécution à l’égard d’autres justiciables.
| 0 |
862,084 |
42
It has been held that the fact that the activity in question consists in the performance of duties conferred and regulated by law in the public interest is irrelevant for the purposes of determining whether that activity can be classified as a supply of services effected for consideration (see, to that effect, judgments of 12 September 2000 in Commission v France, C‑276/97, EU:C:2000:424, paragraph 33, and 29 October 2009 in Commission v Finland, C‑246/08, EU:C:2009:671, paragraph 40). Furthermore, it has also been held that even where the activity in question is designed to fulfil a constitutional obligation exclusively and directly incumbent upon the Member State concerned, the direct link between the supply of services and the consideration received cannot be called into question by this fact alone (see, to that effect, judgment of 29 October 2015 in Saudaçor, C‑174/14, EU:C:2015:733, paragraph 39).
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5 IT IS COMMON GROUND THAT IN THIS CASE THE CONTESTED DECISION IS NOT ADDRESSED TO THE APPLICANTS . IT IS THEREFORE NECESSARY , WITHOUT GOING INTO THE LEGAL NATURE OF THE DECISION , TO CONSIDER WHETHER THE DECISION IS NEVERTHELESS OF DIRECT AND INDIVIDUAL CONCERN TO THE APPLICANTS .
| 0 |
862,085 |
32. In that regard, the case-law of the Court makes it clear that, where goods or services acquired by a taxable person are used for purposes of transactions that are exempt or do not fall within the scope of VAT, no output tax can be collected or input tax deducted (judgment in Eon Aset Menidjmunt , C‑118/11, EU:C:2012:97, paragraph 44 and the case-law cited). In both cases, the direct and immediate link between the input expenditure incurred and the economic activities subsequently carried out by the taxable person is severed.
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83 Since the two pleas alleging misinterpretation of the criterion of imputability to the State of the financial support measures taken in favour of Stardust by Altus and SBT and misapplication of the criterion of the private investor in a market economy are well founded, the contested decision must be annulled without there being any need to examine the other pleas in law raised by the French Government.
| 0 |
862,086 |
88
As regards, second, the measure consisting in terminating the internet connection completely, it must be found that so doing would cause a serious infringement of the freedom to conduct a business of a person who pursues an economic activity, albeit of a secondary nature, consisting in providing internet access by categorically preventing that provider from pursuing the activity in practice in order to remedy a limited infringement of copyright without considering the adoption of measures less restrictive of that freedom.
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76. À cet égard, il y a lieu, à titre liminaire, de rappeler que, comme il ressort de l’économie et de la finalité de la directive 2006/112, ainsi que de la place de l’article 13 de cette directive dans le système commun de TVA établi par la sixième directive, toute activité de nature économique est, en principe, imposable. Sont soumises à la TVA, en règle générale et conformément à l’article 2, paragraphe 1, de la directive 2006/112, les prestations de services fournies à titre onéreux, y compris celles fournies par les organismes de droit public. Les articles 9 et 13 de la directive 2006/112 assignent ainsi un champ d’application très large à la TVA (voir, en ce sens, arrêts Isle of Wight Council e.a., précité, points 25 à 28 et 38, ainsi que du 16 juillet 2009, Commission/Irlande, C‑554/07, point 39).
| 0 |
862,087 |
29
However, even national legislation which applies without distinction to all services, irrespective of the place of establishment of the provider, is liable to constitute a restriction on the freedom to provide services in so far as it reserves an advantage solely to users of services which comply with certain conditions which are de facto specific to the national market and thus deny that advantage to users of other services which are essentially similar but do not comply with the specific conditions provided for in that legislation. Such legislation affects the situation of users of services as such and is thus liable to discourage them from using the services of certain providers, since the services offered by them do not comply with the conditions laid down in that legislation, thus directly affecting access to the market (see, to that effect, judgments of 10 May 1995, Alpine Investments, C‑384/93, EU:C:1995:126, paragraphs 26 to 28 and 35 to 38, and of 10 November 2011, Commission v Portugal, C‑212/09, EU:C:2011:717, paragraph 65 and the case-law cited).
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115. A number of characteristics of the system of protection as laid down by Regulations No 2081/92 and No 510/2006 also support the view that that system is exhaustive in nature.
| 0 |
862,088 |
73. It must, however, be held that the situation at issue in the main proceedings is not covered by that rule against overlapping or, moreover, by that laid down by Article 76 of Regulation No 1408/71 since it does not concern a hypothetical overlapping of entitlements laid down by the legislation of the Member State of residence of the child concerned and of those resulting from the legislation of the Member State of employment designated as the competent State under that regulation (see, to that effect, Bosmann , paragraph 24, and Schwemmer , paragraphs 43 and 51)
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36. Ledit État membre doit parvenir à une récupération effective des sommes dues (voir arrêts Commission/France, précité, point 42, et du 22 décembre 2010, Commission/Italie, C‑304/09, non encore publié au Recueil, point 32). Une récupération tardive, postérieure aux délais impartis, ne saurait satisfaire aux exigences du traité (arrêts du 14 février 2008, Commission/Grèce, C‑419/06, points 38 et 61, ainsi que Commission/Italie, précité, point 32).
| 0 |
862,089 |
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).
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18 THEREFORE , WHEN A NATIONAL COURT OR TRIBUNAL REFERS A PROVISION OF COMMUNITY LAW FOR INTERPRETATION , IT IS TO BE SUPPOSED THAT THE SAID COURT OR TRIBUNAL CONSIDERS THIS INTERPRETATION NECESSARY TO ENABLE IT TO GIVE JUDGMENT IN THE ACTION .
| 0 |
862,090 |
49 That interpretation of the directive is in accordance with the judgment given in Case 380/87 Enichem Base and Others v Comune di Cinisello Balsamo [1989] ECR 2491, paragraphs 19 to 24. In that judgment, in which the Court ruled on the obligation for Member States to communicate to the Commission national draft rules falling within the scope of an article of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste (OJ 1975 L 194, p. 39), the Court held that neither the wording nor the purpose of the provision in question provided any support for the view that failure by the Member States to observe their obligation to give notice in itself rendered unlawful the rules thus adopted. In this regard, the Court expressly considered that the provision in question was confined to imposing an obligation to give prior notice which did not make entry into force of the envisaged rules subject to the Commission' s agreement or lack of opposition and which did not lay down the procedure for Community control of the drafts in question. The Court therefore concluded that the provision under examination concerned relations between the Member States and the Commission but that it did not afford individuals any right capable of being infringed in the event of breach by a Member State of its obligation to give prior notice of its draft regulations to the Commission.
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22 Neither the wording nor the purpose of the provision in question provides any support for the view that failure by the Member States to observe their obligation to give prior notice in itself renders unlawful the rules thus adopted .
| 1 |
862,091 |
36. Even if, according to their wording, the rules on freedom of movement for workers are intended, in particular, to secure the benefit of national treatment in the host State, they also preclude the State of origin from obstructing the freedom of one of its nationals to accept and pursue employment in another Member State (see, to that effect, Terhoeve , paragraphs 27 to 29, and de Groot , paragraph 79).
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58. It seems reasonable to transpose those findings to the situation, referred to in Question 2, concerning the registration of a mark containing a geographical indication, or a term corresponding to that indication and its translation, with respect to spirit drinks which do not meet the specifications required by that indication. The use of a mark containing the element ‘Cognac’ for spirit drinks which do not meet the relevant specifications may therefore be categorised as an ‘evocation’ for the purposes of Article 16(b) of Regulation No 110/2008.
| 0 |
862,092 |
15. Although Article 4 of the Sixth Directive gives a very wide scope to VAT, only activities of an economic nature are, however, covered by that provision (see, to that effect, Case C-306/94 Régie dauphinoise [1996] ECR I-3695, paragraph 15, and Case C-465/03 Kretztechnik [2005] ECR I-4357, paragraph 18). In particular, the application of Article 4(5) of the Sixth Directive implies a prior finding that the activity considered is of an economic nature (Case C-284/04 T-Mobile Austria and Others [2007] ECR I-0000, paragraph 48).
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28. Such a procedure, according to the terms of recital 17 in the preamble to Regulation No 44/2001, may involve only a purely formal check of the documents required for enforceability in the Member State in which enforcement is sought.
| 0 |
862,093 |
46 It is, moreover, settled case-law that, in view of the allocation of jurisdiction under the preliminary ruling procedure provided for by the Protocol of 3 June 1971 on the interpretation of the Brussels Convention by the Court of Justice, it is for the national court to rule on those questions of fact, the Court confining itself to interpreting that Convention in the light of the findings made by the national court (see, to that effect, Leathertex, paragraph 21).
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30. However, a public body which brings an action for recovery against a maintenance debtor is not in an inferior position with regard to the latter. Moreover, the maintenance creditor, whose maintenance has been covered by the payments of the public body, is no longer in a precarious financial position.
| 0 |
862,094 |
67. However, it is also necessary that the restrictions at issue are appropriate to the objectives pursued and do not go beyond what is necessary to attain those objectives (Case C‑451/05 ELISA [2007] ECR I‑8251, paragraph 82, and Commission v Poland , paragraph 58), which it is for the referring court to determine.
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58. Such restrictions must, however, be appropriate to the objective pursued and must not go beyond what is necessary to attain that objective (Case C‑451/05 ELISA [2007] ECR I‑8251, paragraph 82 and the case-law cited).
| 1 |
862,095 |
47 With regard to the conditions under which a Member State is required to make good the loss or damage thus caused, it follows from the case-law cited above that these are three in number, namely that the rule of law infringed must have been intended to confer rights on individuals; the breach must be sufficiently serious; and there must be a direct causal link between the breach of the obligation resting on the State and the damage sustained by the injured parties (Brasserie du Pêcheur and Factortame, paragraph 51; British Telecommunications, paragraph 39; Hedley Lomas, paragraph 25; and Dillenkofer and Others, paragraph 21). Those conditions are to be applied according to each type of situation (Dillenkofer and Others, paragraph 24).
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46. The Court has consistently held that Member States may provide for measures entailing differences of treatment on grounds of age, in accordance with the first subparagraph of Article 6(1) of Directive 2000/78. They enjoy broad discretion in their choice, not only to pursue a particular aim in the field of social and employment policy, but also in the definition of measures capable of achieving it (see Palacios de la Villa , C‑411/05, EU:C:2007:604, paragraph 68, and Rosenbladt , C‑45/09, EU:C:2010:601, paragraph 41).
| 0 |
862,096 |
23. It is settled case-law that, where capital goods are used both for business and for private purposes the taxpayer has the choice, for the purposes of VAT, of (i) allocating those goods wholly to the assets of his business, (ii) retaining them wholly within his private assets, thereby excluding them entirely from the system of VAT, or (iii) integrating them into his business only to the extent to which they are actually used for business purposes (see, to that effect, in particular, Armbrecht , paragraph 20; Bakcsi , paragraphs 25 and 26; Seeling , paragraph 40; and Case C-25/03 HE [2005] ECR I-0000, paragraph 46).
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14 It follows that a measure by which the public authorities grant to certain undertakings a tax exemption which, although not involving a transfer of State resources, places the persons to whom the tax exemption applies in a more favourable financial situation than other taxpayers constitutes State aid within the meaning of Article 92(1) of the Treaty.
| 0 |
862,097 |
94. However, it is settled case-law that Community law does not prevent national courts from taking steps to ensure that the protection of the rights guaranteed by Community law does not entail the unjust enrichment of those who enjoy them (see, in particular, Case 238/78 Ireks-Arkady v Council and Commission [1979] ECR 2955, paragraph 14, Joined Cases C-441/98 and C-442/98 Michaïlidis [2000] ECR I-7145, paragraph 31, and Courage and Crehan , cited above, paragraph 30).
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32. Consequently, it is also solely in the light of the rules applicable within the framework of the professional education and training system of the Member State to which the competent authority awarding a diploma belongs that it can be assessed whether the educational establishment in which the holder received his education and training is ‘a university or establishment of higher education’ or ‘another establishment of equivalent level’ within the meaning of the second indent of the first paragraph of Article 1(a) of Directive 89/48.
| 0 |
862,098 |
37. These heads of claim must be set out unambiguously, so that the Court does not rule ultra petita or indeed fail to rule on a complaint (Case C-296/01 Commission v France [2003] ECR I-13909, paragraph 121, and Case C-255/04 Commission v France , cited above, paragraph 24).
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34. S’agissant des critères d’attribution visés à l’article 30 de la directive 93/37, lorsque les pouvoirs adjudicateurs, comme dans le cas des appels d’offres en cause, se fondent sur l’offre économiquement la plus avantageuse, si la directive 93/37 laisse à ces derniers le choix des critères d’attribution du marché qu’ils entendent retenir, ce choix ne peut toutefois porter que sur des critères visant à identifier l’offre économiquement la plus avantageuse (voir, par analogie, arrêt Beentjes, EU:C:1988:422, point 19).
| 0 |
862,099 |
41 With regard to the complaint as thus clarified, it should be pointed out that in its judgment in Case 76/81 Transporoute v Minister of Public Works ([1982] ECR 417, paragraph 9) the Court has already stated that Directive 71/305 does not authorize the Member States to seek references other than those expressly mentioned in the directive except for the purpose of assessing the financial and economic standing of the contractors as provided for in Article 25 thereof. That finding applies by analogy to Directive 77/62, the relevant rules of which correspond in substance to those of Directive 71/305.
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64. It follows from all the foregoing that, even though the General Court erred in law by holding that the periods for bringing proceedings started to run on the dates of publication of the contested measures, those periods, which should have been calculated from the dates referred to in paragraph 61 of this judgment, had expired on 7 July 2011, the date when the actions were brought. That being the case, the second ground of appeal m ust be rejected (see, by analogy, Case C‑282/05 P Holcim (Deutschland) v Commission [2007] ECR I‑2941, paragraph 33).
The first ground of appeal
Arguments of the parties
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