Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of Belgium. (Member States) [1990] EUECJ C-162/89 (13 June 1990)

Belgium's failure to forward the required reports within the prescribed periods constitutes a breach of its obligations under the EEC Treaty, and internal circumstances cannot justify non-compliance.

Source-derived case information.

Citation: [1990] EUECJ C-162/89
Parties: Applicant: Commission of the European Communities; Defendant: Kingdom of Belgium
Jurisdiction: European Union
Procedural Posture: Infringement Proceedings / Final Judgment
Outcome: Declaration of failure to fulfil obligations; order to pay costs
Legal Topics: Failure to Fulfil Obligations, Implementation of Directives, Reporting Requirements, Waste Management

European Union Law Environmental Law Failure to Fulfil Obligations Implementation of Directives Reporting Requirements Waste Management

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Downloadable case file Legal principles 1 Authorities cited 6 Party arguments 2

Parties

Commission of the European Communities

Applicant

Kingdom of Belgium

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Infringement Proceedings / Final Judgment

Legal Issues

1 Whether Belgium failed to forward required reports under specified directives within prescribed periods
2 Whether internal provisions, practices, or circumstances can justify non-compliance with EU directives

Ratio Decidendi

Belgium's failure to forward the required reports within the prescribed periods constitutes a breach of its obligations under the EEC Treaty, and internal circumstances cannot justify non-compliance.

Court Disposition

Declaration of failure to fulfil obligations; order to pay costs

Orders

Declares that Belgium failed to fulfil its obligations under the EEC Treaty by not forwarding required reports within prescribed periods for the Region of Brussels-Capital under specified directives.
Orders Belgium to pay the costs.

Full Case Text

Judgment text and source record

1 paragraphs

[ Home ] [ Databases ] [ World Law ] [ Multidatabase Search ] [ Help ] [ Feedback ] [ DONATE ] Court of Justice of the European Communities (including Court of First Instance Decisions) You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> Court of Justice of the European Communities (including Court of First Instance Decisions) >> Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of Belgium. (Member States) [1990] EUECJ C-162/89 (13 June 1990) URL: https://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/EUECJ/1990/C16289.html Cite as: [1990] EUECJ C-162/89, [1990] ECR I-2391 [ New search ] [ Help ] IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTICE - The source of this judgment is the web site of the Court of Justice of the European Communities . The information in this database has been provided free of charge and is subject to a Court of Justice of the European Communities disclaimer and a copyright notice . This electronic version is not authentic and is subject to amendment. 61989J0162 Judgment of the Court of 13 June 1990. Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of Belgium. Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations - Non-compliance with a directive - Reports concerning the disposal of water. Case C-162/89. European Court reports 1990 Page I-02391 Pub. RJ Page Pub somm ++++ Member States - Obligations - Implementation of directives - Failure - Justification - Not permissible ( EEC Treaty, Art . 169 ) As the Court has consistently held, a Member State may not plead provisions, practices or circumstances in its internal legal system in order to justify a failure to comply with obligations and time-limits laid down by Community directives . In Case C-162/89 Commission of the European Communities, represented originally by T . van Rijn, a member of its Legal Department, acting as Agent, and subsequently by E . Vliebergh, a member of its Legal Department, acting as Agent, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the office of Georgios Kremlis, a member of its Legal Department, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg, applicant, v Kingdom of Belgium, represented by J . Devadder, Deputy Adviser in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Cooperation with Developing Countries, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Belgian Embassy, 4 rue des Girondins, defendant, APPLICATION for a declaration, that, by failing to forward to the Commission within the prescribed periods the reports referred to in Article 18 of Council Directive 75/439/EEC of 16 June 1975 on the disposal of waste oils ( Official Journal 1975, L 194, p . 23 ), as amended by Council Directive 87/101/EEC of 22 December 1986 ( Official Journal 1987, L 42, p . 43 ), Article 12 of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste ( Official Journal 1975, L 194, p . 39 ), Article 10 of Council Directive 76/403/EEC of 6 April 1976 on the disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated terphenyls ( Official Journal 1976, L 108, p . 4 ) and Article 16 of Council Directive 78/319/EEC of 20 March 1978 on toxic and dangerous waste ( Official Journal 1978, L 84, p . 43 ), in relation to the Flemish Region and the Region of Brussels-Capital, the Kingdom of Belgium has failed to fulfil its obligations under the EEC Treaty, THE COURT composed of : O . Due, President, Sir Gordon Slynn and F . A . Schockweiler ( Presidents of Chambers ), G . F . Mancini, R . Joliet, T . F . O' Higgins, G . C . Rodríguez Iglesias, M . Diez de Velasco and P . G . J . Kapteyn, Judges, ( the grounds of the judgment are not reproduced ) hereby : ( 1 ) Declares that, by failing to forward to the Commission within the prescribed periods the reports needed, in relation to the Region of Brussels-Capital, in order to comply with Article 18 of Council Directive 75/439/EEC of 16 June 1975 on the disposal of waste oils, as amended by Council Directive 87/101/EEC of 22 December 1986, Article 12 of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste, Article 10 of Council Directive 76/403/EEC of 6 April 1976 on the disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated terphenyls and Article 16 of Council Directive 78/319/EEC of 20 March 1978 on toxic and dangerous waste, the Kingdom of Belgium has failed to fulfil its obligations under the EEC Treaty; ( 2 ) Orders the Kingdom of Belgium to pay the costs . © European Communities, 2001 All rights reserved BAILII: Copyright Policy | Disclaimers | Privacy Policy | Feedback | Donate to BAILII URL: https://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/EUECJ/1990/C16289.html

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