Keywords
Summary

Keywords

1 Accession of new Member States to the Communities - Austria - Article 6 of the EC Treaty - Immediate application

(EC Treaty, Art. 6; 1994 Act of Accession, Art. 2)

2 Community law - Principles - Equal treatment - Discrimination on grounds of nationality - Prohibition - Scope - National provision requiring foreign litigants to lodge security for costs - Included - Condition

(EC Treaty, Art. 6, first para.)

3 Community law - Principles - Equal treatment - Discrimination on grounds of nationality - Prohibition - Scope - National provision requiring foreign litigants to lodge security for costs - Whether applicable in an action brought by a shareholder against a company - Not permissible

(EC Treaty, Art. 6, first para.)

Summary

4 Since the 1994 Act of Accession contains no specific conditions with regard to the application of Article 6 of the EC Treaty, the latter provision must, pursuant to Article 2 of the Act of Accession, be regarded as immediately applicable, with the result that it is binding on the Republic of Austria from the date of its accession and applies in that Member State to the future effects of situations arising prior to accession.

5 A domestic rule of civil procedure in a Member State, such as that which requires a national of another Member State, in the case where he is non-resident, to lodge security for costs when he intends to bring legal proceedings, in his capacity as a shareholder, against a company established in that State comes within the scope of application of the Treaty within the meaning of the first paragraph of Article 6 thereof and is subject to the general principle of non-discrimination laid down by that article in so far as the rules which, in the area of company law, seek to protect the interests of shareholders come within the scope of application of the Treaty.

6 The first paragraph of Article 6 of the Treaty must be construed as precluding a Member State from requiring provision of security for costs by a national of another Member State who is also a national of a non-member country, in which he is resident, where that national, who is not resident and has no assets in the first Member State, has brought proceedings before one of its civil courts in his capacity as a shareholder against a company established in that Member State, if such a requirement cannot be imposed on the nationals of that State who are not resident and have no assets there.