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JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fourth Chamber)
18 November 2004 (1)


(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations — Directive 2001/17/EC — Reorganisation and winding-up of insurance undertakings — Failure to transpose within the prescribed period)

In Case C-164/04,

Commission of the European Communities, represented by E. Traversa and M. Shotter, acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg,

applicant,

v

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, represented by C. Jackson, acting as Agent,

defendant,

ACTION for failure to fulfil obligations under Article 226 EC, brought on 31 March 2004,

Commission of the European Communities, represented by E. Traversa and M. Shotter, acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg,

applicant,

v

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, represented by C. Jackson, acting as Agent,

defendant,



THE COURT (Fourth Chamber),



composed of J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, acting for the President of the Fourth Chamber, M. Ilešič (Rapporteur) and E. Levits, Judges,

Advocate General: L.A. Geelhoed,
Registrar: R. Grass,

having regard to the written procedure,

having regard to the decision, after hearing the Advocate General, to proceed to judgment without an Opinion,

gives the following



Judgment



1
In its application, the Commission of the European Communities seeks a declaration of the Court of Justice that, by not adopting the laws, regulations and administrative measures necessary to comply with Directive 2001/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 March 2001 on the reorganisation and winding-up of insurance undertakings (OJ 2001 L 110, p. 28), or, in any event, by not notifying the Commission of such measures, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.

2
In accordance with Article 31(1) of Directive 2001/17, Member States were obliged to bring into force the necessary laws, regulations and administrative measures necessary to comply with that directive before 20 April 2003 and inform the Commission thereof forthwith.

3
In accordance with the procedure laid down by the first paragraph of Article 226 EC, having given the United Kingdom the opportunity to submit its observations, the Commission delivered a reasoned opinion on 15 October 2003, calling upon that Member State to take the necessary measures to comply with that opinion within two months from the date of its notification. Having not subsequently received any information to indicate that all the necessary measures had been adopted, the Commission decided to bring the present action.

4
The United Kingdom Government acknowledges that it has not adopted the necessary measures withinin the prescribed period in order to comply with Directive 2001/17 in relation to the Lloyd’s market and Gibraltar.

5
In accordance with settled case-law, the question whether a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations must be determined by reference to the situation prevailing in the Member State at the end of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion (see, in particular, Case C-143/02 Commission v Italy [2003] ECR I-2877, paragraph 11; Case C-446/01 Commission v Spain [2003] ECR I-6053, paragraph 15).

6
In this case, there is no dispute that, at the end of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion, the United Kingdom had not adopted all the measures necessary to comply with Directive 2001/17.

7
Accordingly, the Commission’s action must be upheld.

8
The Court therefore finds that, by not adopting the laws, regulations and administrative measures necessary to comply with Directive 2001/17, the United Kingdom has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.


Costs

9
Under Article 69(2) of the Rules of Procedure, the unsuccessful party is to be ordered to pay the costs if they have been applied for in the successful party’s pleadings. Since the Commission has applied for a costs order against the United Kingdom and the latter has been unsuccessful, the United Kingdom must be ordered to pay the costs.




On those grounds, the Court (Fourth Chamber) hereby rules:

1.
By not adopting the laws, regulations and administrative measures necessary to comply with Directive 2001/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 March 2001 on the reorganisation and winding-up of insurance undertakings, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.

2.
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is ordered to pay the costs.


Signatures.

1–
Language of the case: English.