European Court of Justice (News)

European Union v Gascogne Sack Deutschland and Gascogne
Law governing the institutions
The Court sets aside the damages imposed on the EU by the General Court on account of bank guarantee charges incurred by several undertakings in the context of excessively long proceedings before the General Court

Ville de Paris v Commission
Environment and consumers
The General Court upholds the actions brought by the cities of Paris, Brussels and Madrid and annuls in part the Commission’s regulation setting excessively high oxides of nitrogen emission limits for the tests for new light passenger and commercial vehicles

VG Media
Approximation of laws
Advocate General Hogan: the Court should rule that the new German rules prohibiting search engines from providing excerpts of press products without prior authorisation by the publisher must not be applied

Deutsche Telekom v Commission
Competition
The General Court partially annuls the Commission decision relating to anticompetitive practices on the Slovakian telecommunications market

Touring Tours und Travel
Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
The Schengen Borders Code precludes Germany from requiring coach transport operators of cross-border services to check the passports and residence permits of passengers before entering or leaving German territory

Mubarak v Council
External relations
The General Court upholds the Council’s decisions of 2017 and 2018 to renew the restrictive measures taken against Mr Mubarak, former President of Egypt, in the light of ongoing judicial proceedings relating to the misappropriation of Egyptian State funds

Servier v Commission
Competition
The General Court annuls in part the European Commission’s decision finding the existence of restrictive agreements and an abuse of a dominant position on the market for perindopril, a medicine used to treat hypertension and heart failure

Saleh Thabet v Council
External relations
The General Court upholds the Council’s decision to freeze the assets of members of the Mubarak family, on the basis of judicial proceedings relating to misappropriation of Egyptian State funds

Novartis Farma
Approximation of laws
The reimbursement by a national healthcare insurance system of a medicinal product for a use not covered by its marketing authorisation (off-label use) is not contrary to EU law

Associação Peço a Palavra and Others
Freedom of establishment
Advocate General Campos Sánchez-Bordona proposes that the Court of Justice declare that the requirements of the Portuguese Government in relation to the reprivatisation of TAP constitute a justified restriction on the freedom of establishment, with the exception of the obligation to maintain and develop the national hub

Commission v Council (AMP Antarctique)
Law governing the institutions
Decisions adopted in the context of the international treaties relating to the preservation and conservation of living resources in Antarctica must be adopted jointly by the EU and the Member States who are parties to those treaties

Tempus Energy and Tempus Energy Technology v Commission
State aid
The General Court annuls the Commission’s decision not to raise objections to the aid scheme establishing a capacity market in the UK

Kuhn
Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
The ‘Brussels Ia’ Regulation is not applicable in determining which Member State’s courts have jurisdiction to rule on claims brought against the Greek State by an individual holding Greek sovereign bonds following their forced exchange in 2012

Verbraucherzentrale Baden-Württemberg
Transport
Air carriers who do not express air fares for intra-Community flights in euros are required to indicate those fares in a local currency objectively linked to the service offered

Deutsche Telekom v Commission
State aid
The General Court upholds the decisions of the European Commission classifying the Spanish tax scheme for the amortisation of ‘financial’ goodwill as State aid incompatible with the internal market

Memoria and Dall'Antonia
Freedom of establishment
The Italian legislation prohibiting private companies from performing an activity of safekeeping of cinerary urns is contrary to EU law

Milivojević
Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Advocate General Tanchev proposes that the Court should rule that a national law that allows loan contracts concluded with foreign lenders who were not authorised to provide credit services in that country to be retroactively annulled is contrary to EU law when the same law does not apply to Croatian lenders

Crédit agricole and Crédit agricole Corporate and Investment Bank v Commission
Competition
The President of the General Court rejects the application of Crédit agricole and JPMorgan Chase to prevent publication of the Commission decision regarding the EURIBOR cartel

Devin v EUIPO - Haskovo (DEVIN)
Intellectual and industrial property
DEVIN, the name of a Bulgarian town, can be registered as an EU trade mark for mineral water

Funke Medien NRW
Freedom of establishment
According to Advocate General Szpunar, a simple military report cannot enjoy copyright protection