Leonesio v Ministero Della Agricoltura E Foreste: ECJ 17 May 1972

leonisioECJ197205

ECJ Measures Adopted By An Institution – 1. A community regulation has direct effect and is, as such, capable of creating individual rights which national courts must protect.
Pecuniary rights against the state, conferred by such a regulation, arise when the conditions set out in the regulation are complied with and it is not possible at a national level to render the exercise of them subject to implementing provisions other than those which might be required by the regulation itself.
2. So as to apply with equal force with regard to nationals of all the member states, community regulations become part of the legal system applicable within the national territory, which must permit the direct effect provided for in article 189 to operate in such a way that reliance thereon by individuals may not be frustrated by domestic provisions or practices.
Budgetary provisions of a member state cannot therefore hinder the direct applicability of the community provision and consequently of the exercise of individual rights created by such a provision.
3. Once all the conditions laid down in regulations nos 1975/69 and 2195/69 were fulfilled, those regulations conferred on farmers a right, which national courts must protect, to payment of the slaughtering subsidy by the member state to which they belonged; such rights could be exercised in each case at the end of the period of two months following the establishment of the proof of slaughter as provided in article 10 of regulation no 2195/69. As from that time, the abovementioned regulations give the farmer the right to require payment of the subsidy without that member state’ s being able to rely on arguments based on any legislative provisions or administrative practices to withhold such payment.

[1972] ECR 287, R-93/71, [1972] EUECJ R-93/71
Bailii

European, Constitutional

Leading Case

Updated: 10 November 2021; Ref: scu.214165