Article 47 - Right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial
Article 31 - Fair and just working conditions
Key facts of the case:
Reference for a preliminary ruling – Social policy – Protection of the safety and health of workers – Directive 89/391/EEC – General obligations relating to the protection of safety and health – Parallel national proceedings – Judgment of an administrative court having force of res judicata before the criminal court – Classification of an event as an ‘accident at work’ – Effectiveness of the protection of the rights guaranteed by Directive 89/391 – Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union – Right to be heard – Disciplinary proceedings against a judge of an ordinary court in the event of failure to comply with a decision of a constitutional court that is contrary to EU law – Primacy of EU law.
Outcome of the case:
On those grounds, the Court (First Chamber) hereby rules:
40) By its first question, the referring court asks, in essence, whether Article 1(1) and (2) and Article 5(1) of Directive 89/391, read in conjunction with Article 31 of the Charter and the principle of effectiveness, must be interpreted as precluding legislation of a Member State, as interpreted by the constitutional court of that Member State, under which the final judgment of an administrative court concerning the classification of an event as an ‘accident at work’ has the force of res judicata before the criminal court, where that legislation does not allow the successors of the worker who was the victim of that event to be heard in any of the proceedings ruling on the existence of such an accident at work.
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50) Similarly, although Article 31 of the Charter, to which the referring court makes reference in its first question referred for a preliminary ruling, provides, in paragraph 1 thereof, that ‘every worker has the right to working conditions which respect his or her health, safety and dignity’, it does not detail any procedural rules for seeking remedies where the protection of the safety and health of workers has not been ensured
53) In particular, when the Member States set out detailed procedural rules for legal actions intended to ensure the protection of rights conferred by Directive 89/391, they must ensure compliance with the right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial, enshrined in Article 47 of the Charter, which constitutes a reaffirmation of the principle of effective judicial protection. Thus, the Member States must ensure that the practical arrangements for the exercise of the remedies on account of a breach of the duties provided for by that directive do not disproportionately affect the right to an effective remedy before a court or tribunal referred to in Article 47 of the Charter (see, by analogy, judgment of 12 January 2023, Nemzeti Adatvédelmi és Információszabadság Hatóság, C‑132/21, EU:C:2023:2, paragraphs 50 and 51).
54) That right comprises various elements, including, in particular, the right to be heard. In that regard, the Court has already held that it would be incompatible with the fundamental right to an effective legal remedy if a judicial decision were founded on facts and documents which the parties themselves, or one of them, have not had an opportunity to examine and on which they have therefore been unable to state their views (see, to that effect, judgment of 25 April 2024, NW and PQ (Classified information), C‑420/22 and C‑528/22, EU:C:2024:344, paragraph 106 and the case-law cited).
59) In the light of the foregoing, the answer to the first question is that Article 1(1) and (2) and Article 5(1) of Directive 89/391, read in conjunction with the principle of effectiveness and Article 47 of the Charter, must be interpreted as precluding legislation of a Member State, as interpreted by the constitutional court of that Member State, under which the final judgment of an administrative court concerning the classification of an event as an ‘accident at work’ has the force of res judicata before the criminal court called on to rule on the civil liability arising from the acts of which the defendant is accused, where that legislation does not allow the successors of the worker who was the victim of that event to be heard in any of the proceedings ruling on the existence of such an accident at work.
