The European Commission has decided on Wednesday 27 November to refer Spain to the EU Court of Justice over its rules on compensation for damage caused by the State when adopting legislation contrary to EU law.
The institution criticises Spanish legislation for establishing less favourable conditions with regard to State liability for breach of Union law than with regard to its liability for breach of the Spanish Constitution. In the Commission’s view, this is a violation of the principle of equivalence.
The Spanish rules also make compensation subject to a number of cumulative conditions which, in the Commission’s view, make it excessively difficult for the State to award damages in the event of infringements of Union law and thus violate the principle of effectiveness.
The European Commission launched the infringement proceeding in June 2017, following complaints received. In their reply to the letter of formal notice and the Commission’s reasoned opinion, the Spanish authorities considered that the State’s liability system was in conformity with Union law. After several exchanges and consultations, the situation has not progressed and the Commission has therefore decided to move to the next stage of the procedure. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)