Keywords
Summary

Keywords

++++

1.Reference for a preliminary ruling - Jurisdiction of the Court - Question intended to permit the national court to determine whether the legislation of another Member State is compatible with Community law - Question answerable

( EEC Treaty, Art . 177 )

2.Approximation of laws - Cosmetic products - Packaging and labels - Directive 76/768 - Exhaustive harmonization - National rules requiring information not referred to in the directive - Prohibited

( Council Directive 76/768, Art . 6(1)(a ) and ( 2 ) )

Summary

1.When ruling on questions intended to permit the national court to determine whether provisions of its national law are in accordance with Community law, the Court may provide the criteria for the interpretation of Community law which will enable the national court to solve the legal problem with which it is faced . The same is true when it is to be determined whether the provisions of the law of a Member State other than that of the court requesting the ruling are compatible with Community law .

2.Directive 76/768/EEC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to cosmetic products has provided exhaustively for the harmonization of national rules on the packaging and labelling of those products . Consequently :

( i ) Article 6(2 ) of the directive, which requires Member States to take all measures necessary to ensure that in the labelling, presentation for sale and advertising of cosmetic products, the wording, use of names, trade marks, images or other signs, figurative or otherwise, suggesting a characteristic which the products in question do not possess are prohibited, precludes national rules from requiring an indication of the quality and quantity of the substances whose presence is indicated on the packaging, in advertisements, or in the names of cosmetic products covered by the directive;

( ii ) Article 6(1)(a ), which requires Member States to take all measures necessary to ensure that cosmetic products may be marketed only if their packaging, containers or labels bear, inter alia, the name or style and the address or registered office of the manufacturer or the person responsible for marketing the cosmetic product who are established within the Community, prohibits a Member State from requiring, in the case of imported cosmetic products, manufactured by a producer established in the Community, that the name of the undertaking established and responsible for marketing in that Member State should be given on the packaging, containers or labels of the products .