Summary
Parties
Grounds
Decision on costs
Operative part
Keywords
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Action for failure to act - Natural or legal persons - Failures to act against which an action lies - Failure to commence proceedings for a breach of Treaty obligations - Inadmissibility
( EEC Treaty, Art . 169, second paragraph, and Art . 175, third paragraph )
Summary
An action for failure to act brought by a natural or legal person for a declaration that in not commencing against a Member State proceedings to establish its breach of obligations the Commission has, in breach of the Treaty, failed to take a decision .
First, it is clear from the scheme of Article 169 of the Treaty that the Commission is not obliged to commence proceedings under that provision but has a discretionary power in this regard which excludes the right of private individuals to require that institution to adopt a specific position .
Secondly, a natural or legal person who asks the Commission to commence proceedings pursuant to Article 169 is in fact seeking the adoption of acts which are not of direct and individual concern to him within the meaning of the second paragraph of Article 173 and which it could not therefore challenge by means of an action for annulment in any event .
Parties
In Case 247/87
Star Fruit Company SA, whose registered office is in Brussels, represented by J . Cloetens, of the Brussels Bar with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of P . Schleimer, 26 rue Philippe-II,
applicant,
v
Commission of the European Communities, represented by its Legal Adviser, M . J . Jonczy, acting as Agent, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the office of Georgios Kremlis, a Member of its Legal Department, Wagner Centre, C 254, Luxembourg,
defendant,
supported by the
French Republic, represented by E . Belliard and Géraud de Bergues, acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the French Embassy,
intervener,
APPLICATION under Articles 173 and 175 of the EEC Treaty for a declaration that the Commission has failed to commence proceedings under Article 169 of the Treaty to establish the French Republic' s failure to fulfil its obligations,
THE COURT ( Second Chamber )
composed of : T . F . O' Higgins, President of the Chamber, G . F . Mancini and F . A . Schockweiler, Judges,
Advocate General : C . O . Lenz
Registrar : D . Louterman, Administrator
having regard to the Report for the Hearing and further to the hearing on 30 November 1988,
having heard the Opinion of the Advocate General delivered at the sitting on 14 December 1988,
gives the following
Judgment
Grounds
1 By application lodged at the Court Registry on 14 August 1987, the Belgian company Star Fruit Company, which specializes in the importation and exportation of fresh bananas, brought an action under the second paragraph of Article 173 and the third paragraph of Article 175 of the EEC Treaty essentially for a declaration that the Commission of the European Communities had failed to commence proceedings against the French Republic under Article 169 of the Treaty .
2 The applicant considers that the system for supplying the banana market in France is incompatible with Article 30 et seq . of the EEC Treaty and with Article 2 of the Lomé Convention of 28 February 1975 ( Official Journal
