Luxembourg, 12/07/2001 (Agence Europe) - Below is an overview of the recent activities of the Court of Justice:
Gold jewellery could better circulate in France and Ireland. The trade is precious metals with the name "999 thousandths" will soon be authorised in France, which gave its assurance. This did not save it from being condemned for having not, until now, authorised the marketing of precious metals from other Member States, where they are legally sold. 999 thousandths corresponds to nearly pure gold. France only authorises the titles 916 and 750 thousandths for jewellery or gold products, which may be sold under the name "gold" and those called 585 and 375 thousandths under the name "gold alloy". Since 1998, France says it has plans to include 999 thousandths in its legislation. The Court recalls its so-called "cassis de Dijon" ruling, which asserts the principal according to which a product legally sold in a Member State must be able to circulate in all the others unless, among others, for reasons of consumer protection. This reason was not supported in this case.
No more so than it was in the "Commission against Ireland" ruling on the same issue. Ireland is condemned for having granted prerogatives to the corporation of goldsmiths from the city of Dublin, which acts in violation of the rules covering free movement when it requires additional stamps. According to the Court, those which have precious metals imported from other Member States should suffice.
The procedure with lead to the "Maribel" ruling by the sixth chamber of the Court took thirty months. It condemns Belgium, late, for not having recuperated the BEF 11.4 billion in illegal aid granted by the Belgian State to companies in the form of reductions to social contributions. These aids, which should have been in 1997 (year of the decision by the Commission and of the appeal by Belgium, have been recuperated from the companies in 2000). The condemnation thus applies to the past. The Belgian press placed emphasis on the fact that Belgium is condemned for the costs (fees for the lawyers which in the case of the trial against the Commission - it was the case here - are limited to paying the Brussels-Luxembourg train ticket for the civil servant from the European Commission Legal service, who moved to stand before the Court of Justice).
Rights of border workers manhandled in Leclere ruling. Thus is the opinion of the specialist lawyers that temper the positive point of the ruling brought out in the Communiqué from the Court of Justice last 31 May (see EUROPE of 1 January, p.16). The Court indicates in the last paragraph the a retired border worker (pension or work related accident) is no longer considered as being a worker and thus can enjoy allowances (in this case from births) that have no link with his previous professional activity unless he resides in the country where he worked, which is, according to the lawyers, manifestly improbable for a border worker who has always received it from the other side of the border.
The Court published two Communiqués in which it underlines the importance that it grants to the conclusions of one of its Advocates General, Philippe Léger (see yesterday's EUROPE for the conclusions from the same Advocate General in the Hautala case) in two cases: - "Wouters and Savelbergh" case, from the name of the two Dutch lawyers for whom the Bar banned to collaborate with the expert accountant consultancy firms Arthur Andersen and Price Waterhouse in the Netherlands. In the eyes of the Advocate General, explains the Communiqué, there exists a certain incompatibility between these advisory activities and the control activity exercised by the chartered accountants. The essence of the profession of lawyer may, according to him, prevent, the formation of a community of financial interest with the members of the category of chartered accountants; - Arduino case where the Advocate General Léger feels that the Italian ministerial decree approving the proposals from the Bar concerning the scale for their fees must respect certain conditions to the extent that it restrains competition on the market for legal services. If the solution from Philippe Léger was retained it would be for the national judge who sent the dossier to the Court to verify where the public authorities exercise an effective control over the content of the decision by the National Council of the Italian Bar and if the ministerial decree by approving the scale for lawyers "pursues an aim of general interest".