Federal Republic of Germany v. European Parliament

The Federal Republic of Germany sought annulment of a European Community directive that regulated advertising and sponsorship of tobacco products. The Court held that the Community legislature acted properly and within its authority when promulgating the Directive to remove obstacles to cross-border movement of goods by rectifying inconsistencies amongst the laws of Member-States while ensuring a high level of health protection. The Court further held that any indirect infringement by the Directive upon the freedom of expression was proportional to and justified by the purposes behind the Directive's adoption, noting that the restrictions did not compromise journalistic expression but applied only to commercial advertisements within journalistic media.

DOWNLOAD DOCUMENT

Federal Republic of Germany v. European Parliament, Case C-380/03, Court of Justice of the European Union (2006).

  • European Union
  • Dec 12, 2006
  • Court of Justice of the European Union

Parties

Plaintiff Federal Republic of Germany

Defendant

  • Council of the European Union
  • European Parliament

Third Party

  • Commission of the European Communities
  • French Republic
  • Kingdom of Spain
  • Republic of Finland

Legislation Cited

International/Regional Instruments Cited

Related Documents

Type of Litigation

Tobacco Control Topics

Substantive Issues

Type of Tobacco Product

None