Article 47 - Right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial
Key facts of the case:
REQUEST for a preliminary ruling under Article 267 TFEU from the Tribunale regionale di giustizia amministrativa di Trento (Italy), made by decision of 21 November 2013, received at the Court on 7 February 2014, in the proceedings Orizzonte Salute — Studio Infermieristico Associato v Azienda Pubblica di Servizi alla persona San Valentino — Città di Levico Terme, Ministero della Giustizia, Ministero dell’Economia e delle Finanze, Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri, Segretario Generale del Tribunale regionale di giustizia amministrativa di Trento.
Results (sanctions) and key consequences of the case:
...the Court (Fifth Chamber) hereby rules:
48. As regards the principle of effectiveness, the Court has already held that it implies a requirement of judicial protection, guaranteed by Article 47 of the Charter, that is binding on the national court (see, to that effect, judgment in Sánchez Morcillo and Abril García, C‑169/14, EU:C:2014:2099, paragraph 35 and the case-law cited).
49. Accordingly, Article 1 of Directive 89/665 must be interpreted in the light of the fundamental rights set out in the Charter, in particular the right to an effective remedy before a court or tribunal, laid down in Article 47 thereof (see, to that effect, judgment in Ryneš, C‑212/13, EU:C:2014:2428, paragraph 29).
50. It is therefore necessary to examine whether legislation such as that at issue in the main proceedings may be considered to be consistent with the principles of equivalence and effectiveness and consistent with the effectiveness of Directive 89/665.
51. The two parts of that investigation concern (i) the amounts of the standard fee to be paid for bringing an action in administrative judicial proceedings relating to public procurement and (ii) cases of a cumulation of such fees paid within the same administrative judicial proceedings relating to public procurement.
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72. The levying of multiple and cumulative court fees within the same administrative judicial proceedings is not, in principle, contrary to Article 1 of Directive 89/665, read in the light of Article 47 of the Charter, or to the principles of equivalence and effectiveness.
73. As a rule, such levying contributes to the proper functioning of the judicial system, since it amounts to a source of financing for the judicial activity of the Member States and discourages the submission of claims which are manifestly unfounded or which seek only to delay the proceedings.
74. Those objectives justify the multiple application of court fees such as those at issue in the main proceedings only where the subject-matter of the actions or supplementary pleas are in fact separate and amount to a significant enlargement of the subject-matter of the dispute that is already pending.
75. By contrast, if that is not the case, an obligation of additional payment of such court fees because of the submission of such actions or pleas is contrary to the availability of legal remedies ensured by Directive 89/665 and to the principle of effectiveness.
