Case T‑445/16

(publication by extracts)

Schniga GmbH

v

Community Plant Variety Office

(Plant variety rights — Application for Community plant variety rights for the plant variety Gala Schnico — Technical examination — Obligation to state reasons — First sentence of Article 75 of Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 — Uniformity — Article 8 of Regulation No 2100/94 — Complementary examination — Article 57(3) of Regulation No 2100/94 — Equal treatment — Examination of the facts by the CPVO of its own motion — Article 76 of Regulation No 2100/94)

Summary — Judgment of the General Court (Seventh Chamber), 23 February 2018

1. Agriculture — Uniform legislation — Protection of plant varieties — Technical examination — Power of the Community Plant Variety Office to entrust the responsibility for the technical examination to national bodies — Designation of a single examination office for varieties belonging to the same plant variety mutation group — Lawfulness

   (Council Regulation No 2100/94, Art. 55(1); Commission Regulation No 874/2009, Art. 13(1))

2. Agriculture — Uniform legislation — Protection of plant varieties — Technical examination — Discretion of the Community Plant Variety Office — Scope

   (Council Regulation No 2100/94, Art. 55(4))

3. Agriculture — Uniform legislation — Protection of plant varieties — Technical examination — Obligations of applicants as regards material submitted for examination

   (Council Regulation No 2100/94, Art. 55)

1.  In accordance with Article 55(1) of Regulation No 2100/94 on plant variety types and Article 13(1) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 874/2009 establishing implementing rules for the application of Regulation No 2100/94 as regards proceedings before the Community Plant Variety Office (CPVO), the Administrative Council of the CPVO is empowered to entrust the responsibility for the technical examination of varieties of the species concerned to one or several competent offices in a Member State.

   The unambiguous and preliminary designation of the examination office charged with the technical examination of all species or varieties belonging to the same mutation group is in keeping with the general scheme for Community plant variety rights established by that regulation. That general scheme and those principles require that candidate varieties belonging to the same plant variety mutation group of a given species be assessed under the same conditions.

   (see paras 48, 52, 53)

2.  See the text of the decision.

   (see para. 63)

3.  The responsibility lies solely with applicants for plant variety rights to submit, for the purposes of the technical examination of the candidate variety, grafting material of sufficient quality.

   (see para. 83)