6.10.2012   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 303/17

1.

Are Article 101 TFEU (formerly Article 81 of the EC Treaty, read in conjunction with Article 10) and Article 4(3) TEU compatible with rules such as those laid down in the regulation on the tariff applying to procuradores, namely: Royal Decree 1373/2003 of 7 November 2003, which provides that their remuneration is subject to a minimum tariff or scale, which can be varied, upwards or downwards, only by 12 % and when it is not really possible for the authorities of the Member State, including the courts, to depart from the minimum levels laid down in the statutory scale if exceptional circumstances arise?

2.

For the purpose of applying the tariff without applying the minimum levels laid down therein: may the fact that the amount of fees payable under the scale or tariff is disproportionate to the work actually done be regarded as exceptional circumstances?

3.

Is Article 56 TFEU (formerly Article 49) compatible with the regulation on the tariff applying to procuradores, namely: Royal Decree 1373/2003 of 7 November 2003?

4.

Do these rules meet the requirements of necessity and proportionality referred to in Article 15(3) of Directive 2006/123/EC? (1)

5.

Does Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, enshrining the right to a fair trial, include the right to defend oneself properly in a situation in which the figure at which the fees of a procurador are set is disproportionately high and does not correspond to the work actually carried out?

6.

If so, are the provisions of the Spanish Law on civil procedure, which prevent the party ordered to pay costs from challenging the amount of the fees of the procurador on the grounds that they are considered to be excessively high and do not correspond to the work actually carried out, compatible with Article 6 of the European Convention?