Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 12 October 2016 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Hof van beroep te Antwerpen — Belgium) — Sven Mathys v De Grave Antverpia NV

(Case C-92/15) (1)

((Reference for a preliminary ruling - Directive 96/75/EC - Systems of chartering and pricing in inland waterway transport - Scope - Article 1(b) - ‘Carrier’ - Article 2 - Freedom to conclude contracts and negotiate prices))

(2016/C 462/03)

Language of the case: Dutch

Referring court

Hof van beroep te Antwerpen

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellant: Sven Mathys

Respondent: De Grave Antverpia NV

Operative part of the judgment

In the context of inland waterway transport activities, Article 1(b) of Council Directive 96/75/EC of 19 November 1996 on the systems of chartering and pricing in national and international inland waterway transport in the Community, in so far as it defines a ‘carrier’ as an owner or an operator of one or more inland waterway vessels, and Article 2 of that directive, in so far as it states that, in that field, contracts are to be freely concluded between the parties concerned, must be interpreted as not precluding national legislation, such as that applicable to the dispute in the main proceedings, that would enable a person who does not correspond to that definition to conclude a contract of carriage as a carrier.

(1)  OJ C 155, 11.5.2015.