TWD Textilwerke Deggendorf GmbH contra Bundesrepublik Deutschland.

• Jurisdiction: European Union
• Court: Court of Justice (European Union)
• Writing for the Court: Rodríguez Iglesias
• ECLI: ECLI:EU:C:1994:90
• Docket Number: C-188/92
• Date: 09 March 1994
• Procedure Type: Reference for a preliminary ruling

Judgment of the Court of 9 March 1994. - TWD Textilwerke Deggendorf GmbH v Bundesrepublik Deutschland. - Reference for a preliminary ruling: Oberverwaltungsgericht für das Land Nordrhein-Westfalen - Germany. - State aid - Action against ianternal measures implementing a Commission decision - Preliminary reference - Definitive nature of the decision vis-à-vis the recipient of the aid to which it relates - Assessment of validity. - Case C-188/92.

European Court reports 1994 Page I-00833
Swedish special edition Page I-00059
Finnish special edition Page I-00067

Summary Parties Grounds Decision on costs Operative part

Keywords

++++

Aid granted by States - Commission Decision finding aid to be incompatible with the common market and ordering its recovery - Decision not having been challenged under the second paragraph of Article 173 of the Treaty by the recipient of the aid who had been notified in due time - Challenge to the validity of the decision before the national court in an action brought against the national measures taken to implement it - Challenge to be dismissed by the national court

(EEC Treaty, Art. 93(2) and second paragraph of 173)

Summary

The national court is bound by a Commission decision adopted under Article 93(2) of the Treaty where, in view of the implementation of that decision by the national authorities, the recipient of the aid to which the implementation measures are addressed brings before it an action in which it pleads the unlawfulness of the Commission' s decision and where that recipient of aid, although informed in writing by the Member State of the Commission' s decision, did not bring an action against that decision under the second paragraph of Article 173 of the Treaty, or did not do so within the period prescribed.

To accept that in such circumstances the person concerned could challenge the implementation of the decision in proceedings before the national court on the ground that the decision was unlawful would in effect enable the person concerned to overcome the definitive nature which the decision assumes as against that person once the time-limit for bringing an action has expired and would be incompatible with the requirements of legal certainty.

Parties

In Case C-188/92,

REFERENCE to the Court under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty by the Oberverwaltungsgericht fuer das Land Nordrhein-Westfalen (Higher Administrative Court for North Rhine-Westphalia, Federal Republic of Germany) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that court between

TWD Textilwerke Deggendorf GmbH

and

Federal Republic of Germany, represented by the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs,

on the definitive nature of Commission Decision 86/509/EEC of 21 May 1986, on aid granted by the Federal Republic of Germany and the Land of Bavaria to a producer of polyamide and polyester yarn situated in Deggendorf (Official Journal 1986 L 300, p. 34), vis-à-vis the recipient of the aid to which it relates, after the expiry of the time-limit prescribed by the third paragraph of Article 173 of the EEC Treaty for bringing an action, and on the validity of that decision,

THE COURT,

composed of: O. Due, President, J.C. Moitinho de Almeida and Díez de Velasco (Presidents of Chambers), C.N. Kakouris, R. Joliet, F.A. Schockweiler, G.C. Rodríguez Iglesias (Rapporteur), F. Grévisse, M. Zuleeg, P.J.G. Kapteyn and J.L. Murray, Judges,

Advocate General: F.G. Jacobs,

Registrar: L. Hewlett, Administrator,

after considering the written observations submitted on behalf of:

- TWD Textilwerke Deggendorf GmbH, by Walter Forstner, Rechtsanwalt, Deggendorf, assisted by Professor Michael Schweitzer,

- the German Government, by Ernst Roeder and Claus-Dieter Quassowski, respectively Ministerialrat and Regierungsdirektor at the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs, acting as Agents,

- the French Government, by Philippe Pouzoulet and Jean-Louis Falconi, respectively Deputy Director and Secretary of Foreign Affairs in the Legal Affairs Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, acting as Agents,

- the Commission of the European Communities, by Antonino Abate, Principal Legal Adviser, and Claus Michael Happe, civil servant seconded to the Commission under the scheme for exchanging national civil servants, acting as Agents, assisted by Professor Meinhard Hilf, University of Hamburg,

having regard to the Report for the Hearing,

after hearing the oral observations of TWD Textilwerke Deggendorf GmbH, represented by Karl-Heinz Schupp...