Quantitative Restrictions And MEQRs Flashcards
(40 cards)
Where do you find the Treaty base for the prohibition of quantitative restrictions and measures having equivalent effect?
Art 34 TFEU
Why are quantitative restrictions banned by the Treaty?
They restrict the quantity of goods allowed into the country by using import quotas, thus restricting the free movement of goods.
What is the Geddo definition of quantitative restrictions?
“measures which amount to a total or partial restraint of imports, exports or goods in transit”
In Henn and Darby [1980] what was the example of a quantitative restriction?
Ban on import to the UK of obscene and indecent materials was a quantitative restriction and prohibited under Art 34 TFEU.
How can you justify quantitative restrictions?
With reference to Art 36 TFEU derogation grounds
What is the Dassonville definition of a MEQR?
“All trading rules enacted by Member States which are capable of hindering directly or indirectly, actually or potentially, intra-[Union] trade”
Which case supports the suggestion that a MEQR need only potentially hinder trade to contravene Art 34 TFEU?
Foie gras.
Which case supports the idea that there is no de minimis rule of a MEQR?
Ditlev Bluhme - Danish prohibition of keeping only brown bees on Læsø island was MEQR even though small territory.
What rules enacted by MS can be a MEQR?
- national rules/laws
- national regulations/acts
- administrative provisions
- administrative practices
In which case were remarks by the Finnish minister on the safety of vehicle lifts made in Italy held to be part of state policy?
A.M.G - COS.MET
In which case was a non-public body, supported by the Irish gov, where members appointed by gov, financed by gov and aims and campaigns defined by the gov held to be part of the state?
Commission v Ireland (Buy Irish)
What did the case of Apple and Pears Development Council show?
Non-public body financed by the gov held to be part of the state.
Cannot disparage goods solely on origin, but can give focus to qualities or features of particular products even if typical of national production.
In which case did a private standardisation board that certified pipes for sale become classified as part of the state because needed certificate to sell in Germany?
Fra.bo
Which case established that a MEQR cannot be construed as a marketing strategy adopted by private parties as they do not have sufficient power to restrict the free movement of goods principle?
Sapod Audic
In which case was it held that MSs are responsible for the actions taken by private bodies that obstruct the free movement of goods?
Commission v France (Spanish Strawberries)
What are distinctly applicable rules?
Ones that impose a different burden on domestic and imported products, which discriminate against imports. E.g. Commission v Irish (Buy Irish), or requiring import licence.
Can distinctly applicable rules be justified?
Yes, only under Art 36 derogations.
If there is no justification for a distinctly applicable MEQR then what should a MS?
Get rid of the procedure.
What are indistinctly applicable rules?
Ones that have seemingly neutral criteria but on application there is the same burden in law on domestic and imported ones, but different burden in fact.
What are the two important principles established in Cassis de Dijon?
mutual recognition
mandatory rules justification (rule of reason) for additional justification of indistinctly applicable rules
In which case, was an indistinctly applicable MEQR that did not respect the mutual recognition principle held to apply because of a Belgian requirement that margarine be sold in cube-shaped packages to distinguish it from butter?
Rau
In which case was the mutual recognition principle applied to the prohibition of the sale of beer that did not meet German beer purity rules?
Commission v Germany (beer purity rules)
What are the mandatory rules justification under Cassis?
Restrictions are allowed for indistinctly applicable measures if they can satisfy certain mandatory requirements (non-exhaustive list):
- effectiveness of fiscal supervision
- protection of public health
- fairness of consumer transactions
- defence of the consumer
In which case was the protection of the environment an appropriate justification for an indistinctly applicable MEQR requiring the sale of drinks in reusable containers?
Commission v Denmark 302/86
