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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> Court of Justice of the European Communities (including Court of First Instance Decisions) >> Pelle v Council & Commission (Agriculture) [2007] EUECJ T-8/95 (27 September 2007) URL: https://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/EUECJ/2007/T895.html Cite as: [2007] EUECJ T-8/95 |
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(Non-contractual liability Milk Additional levy Reference quantity Regulation (EEC) No 2187/93 Compensation of producers Suspension of limitation)
In Joined Cases T-8/95 and T-9/95,
Wilhelm Pelle, residing at Kluse-Ahlen (Germany),
Ernst-Reinhard Konrad, residing at Löllbach (Germany),
represented by B. Meisterernst, M. Düsing, D. Manstetten, F. Schulze and W. Haneklaus, lawyers,
applicants,
Council of the European Union, represented initially by A. Brautigam and A.-M. Colaert, and subsequently by A.-M.Colaert, acting as Agents,
and
Commission of the European Communities, represented by D. Booß, T. van Rijn and M. Niejahr, acting as Agents, assisted initially by H.-J. Rabe and G. Berrisch, subsequently by H.-J. Rabe and M. Núñez-Müller, and latterly by H.-J. Rabe, lawyers,
defendants,
APPLICATIONS for compensation under Article 178 of the EC Treaty (now Article 235 EC ) and under the second paragraph of Article 215 of the EC Treaty (now the second paragraph of Article 288 EC) for damage allegedly suffered by the applicants as a result of the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 857/84 of 31 March 1984 adopting general rules for the application of the levy referred to in Article 5c of Council Regulation (EEC) No 804/68 in the milk and milk products sector (OJ 1984 L 90, p. 13), as supplemented by Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1371/84 of 16 May 1984 laying down detailed rules for the application of the additional levy referred to in Article 5c of Regulation No 804/68 (OJ 1984 L 132, p. 11),
composed of M. Vilaras, President, E. Martins Ribeiro and K. Jürimäe, Judges,
Registrar: J. Plingers, Administrator,
having regard to the written procedure and further to the hearing on 23 January 2007,
gives the following
Legal context
The system of reference quantities
The rules concerning compensation and limitation
'Following the judgment [Mulder II, paragraph 9 above] ..., the Community institutions deem it necessary to notify the parties concerned of the following:
(1) The Court of Justice has recognised the Community's non-contractual liability under Article [288 EC] vis-à -vis all producers as defined in Article 12(c) of Regulation (EEC) No 857/84 who have suffered reparable injury falling within the terms of the abovementioned judgment owing to their not having, as a result of their participation in the system introduced by Regulation (EEC) No 1078/77, received a milk quota in good time and who satisfy the terms and criteria of that judgment.
(2) The institutions undertake, with regard to all producers covered by paragraph 1 and until the end of the period mentioned in paragraph 3, not to plead that entitlement to claim is barred by lapse of time in accordance with the provisions of Article 43 (now Article 46) of the Statute of the Court of Justice, provided that entitlement to compensation has not already been barred on grounds of time on the date of publication of this Communication in the Official Journal of the European Communities or was not already barred on the earlier date on which the producer applied to one of the institutions.
(3) In order to give full effect to [Mulder II, paragraph 9 above] the institutions will adopt practical arrangements for compensating the persons concerned. Payment of interest will be dealt with in these arrangements.
The institutions will specify to what authorities and within what period claims are to be made. Producers are assured that the possible recognition of their rights will be in no way affected if before the opening of this period they do not make an approach to the Community institutions or the national authorities'.
'The producer shall send his application [for compensation] to the competent authority. The producer's application shall reach the competent authority, subject to rejection, by 30 September 1993 at the latest.
The limitation period pursuant to Article 43 of the Statute of the Court shall start to run afresh for all producers on whichever of the two dates referred to in the first subparagraph is appropriate if the application referred to in that subparagraph has not been made by that date, save where the limitation period has been interrupted by an application to the Court of Justice made in accordance with the same Article 43'.
'Within four months o[f] receipt of an application the competent authority referred to in Article 10 shall, in the name and on behalf of the Council and the Commission, make an offer of compensation to the producer, ... .'
'Failure to accept the offer within two months of its receipt shall mean that it shall not be binding in the future on the Community institutions concerned.'
'Proceedings against the Communities in matters arising from non-contractual liability shall be barred after a period of five years from the occurrence of the event giving rise thereto. The limitation period shall be interrupted if proceedings are instituted before the Court or if prior to such proceedings an application is made by the aggrieved party to the relevant institution of the Communities. In the latter event the proceedings must be instituted within the period of two months provided for in Article 230 of the EC Treaty ... the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 232 of the EC Treaty ... shall apply where appropriate.'
Facts
Procedure
Forms of order sought by the parties
order the defendants jointly and severally to pay him the sum of DEM 81 159. 764 by way of SLOM I damages for the period from 2 March 1985 until 29 March 1989, together with default interest at the rate of 8% per annum from 19 May 1992;
order the defendants jointly and severally to pay the costs.
order the defendants jointly and severally to pay him the sum of DEM 83 670. 155 by way of SLOM I damages for the period from 1 July 1984 until 29 March 1989, together with default interest at the rate of 8% per annum from 19 May 1992;
order the defendants jointly and severally to pay the costs.
declare the action inadmissible;
in the alternative, dismiss the action as unfounded;
order the applicant to pay the costs.
Law
Arguments of the parties
Findings of the Court
Costs
On those grounds,
hereby
1. Orders the Council and the Commission to make good the damage suffered by Wilhelm Pelle et Ernst-Reinhard Konrad as a result of the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 857/84 of 31 March 1984 adopting general rules for the application of the levy referred to in Article 5c of Regulation (EEC) No 804/68 in the milk and milk products sector, as supplemented by Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1371/84 of 16 May 1984 laying down detailed rules for the application of the additional levy referred to in Article 5c of Regulation (EEC) No 804/68, in so far as those regulations did not provide for the allocation of a reference quantity to producers who, pursuant to an undertaking given under Council Regulation (EEC) No 1078/77 of 17 May 1977, introducing a system of premiums for the non-marketing of milk and milk products and for the conversion of dairy herds, did not deliver any milk during the reference year adopted by the Member State concerned;
2. Orders that Wilhelm Pelle, applicant in Case T-8/95, be compensated for losses suffered as a result of the application of Regulation No 857/84 for the period commencing 5 December 1987 and ending 28 March 1989;
3. Orders that Ernst-Reinhard Konrad, applicant in Case T-9/95, be compensated for losses suffered as a result of the application of Regulation No 857/84 for the period commencing 27 November 1986 and ending on 28 March 1989;
4. Requests the parties to inform the Court within six months from the date of delivery of this judgment of the amounts of damages agreed to be payable;
5. Orders that, in the absence of agreement, the parties shall transmit to the Court within the same period a statement of their views with supporting figures;
6. Reserves the costs.
Vilaras |
Martins Ribeiro |
Jürimäe |
Delivered in open court in Luxembourg on 27 September 2007.
Registrar |
President |
E. Coulon |
M. Vilaras |
* Language of the case: German.