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… Each of those , during which the fire-fighter must be present at the fire station, is made up of a time on active service and time on stand-by which may be by operational duties. 23 By letter of 13 December 2006, Mr Fuß, citing the order of the Court in Case C-52/04 Personalrat der Feuerwehr Hamburg [2005] ECR I-7111, requested that, in future, his weekly working time should no longer exceed the maximum average of 48 hours laid down in Article 6(b) of Directive 2003/88. …

… In the absence of relevant European Union law provisions, it is for the national law of the Member State concerned to determine, while ensuring observance of the of and , first, whether reparation for the loss or damage suffered by a worker such as Mr Fuß in the main proceedings, as a result of the breach of a rule of European Union law, should take the form of additional time off in lieu or financial compensation for the worker and, second, the rules concerning …

… In the absence of relevant EU law provisions, it is for the national law of the Member State concerned to determine, while ensuring observance of the of and , first, whether reparation for the loss or damage suffered by a worker such as Mr Fuß in the main proceedings, as a result of the breach of a rule of EU law, should take the form of additional time off in lieu or financial compensation for the worker and, second, the rules concerning the method of calculation …

… ; nor does it set out grounds for the suspension or of such a . …

… In particular, that provision does not require suspension of the period for the duration of appeal proceedings, contrary to the provision made under Article 221(3) of the Customs Code. 25 However, according to the Czech Government and the Commission, the national legislature does not enjoy absolute freedom. First, the legislation of the Member States must be consistent with the of and . …

… where the fact that those authorities have been unable to determine the exact amount of duty legally due is attributable to an act which could give rise to criminal court proceedings (Snauwaert and Others, paragraph 29). 33 In that connection, it should be noted, first, that Article 221(4) of the Customs Code does not itself lay down any or grounds for the suspension or of the applicable. …

… The Commission emphasises that, pursuant to the of procedural autonomy, the national courts must in any event ensure that the time-limits meet the requirements of and . B - Appraisal 1. Preliminary remarks 36. …

… After noting that the application had been lodged five years after the accident, the tribunal d’arrondissement de Luxembourg declared that the action was time-barred, since it had been brought after the expiry of the two-year laid down in Article 29 of the Warsaw Convention for the bringing of actions for damages. In that regard, the tribunal took the view that that is predetermined and may not be suspended or . 17. …

… Thus, whereas those instruments seek to encourage rapid and out-of-court compensation for the victims of accidents, the attempt to reach an amicable settlement entails considerable risks for the victim concerned if the laid down in Article 29 of the Warsaw Convention genuinely cannot be suspended, or waived. 34. …

… of law - of and - of equality) I - Introduction 1. …

… In the absence of any suspension of the running of the and of any acts that , the claim being pursued by the action should be deemed time-barred through expiry of the period of one year referred to in Article 2 of Decreto legislativo No 80/92. 21. The referring court considers its decision in the case to turn on the application of Community law. …

… This affects, for example, the question of the applicability of the provisions laying down the respective and those governing the suspension and the of the running of those . As the Commission and the referring court rightly state, arguments can be made for and against a certain legal opinion depending on the national provision in question. 57. …

… of and . …

… Consequently, the fact that institution of infringement proceedings does not have the effect of or suspending the does not make it impossible or excessively difficult for individuals to exercise the rights which they derive from Community law. 40 In addition, Danske Slagterier pleads a breach of the principle of equivalence since German law provides for of the when a domestic action under Paragraph 839 of the BGB is brought in parallel …

… In its view, application, for the first time and by analogy, of the time-limit laid down in Paragraph 852 of the BGB to actions for damages against a State for breach of Community law would infringe the of legal certainty and legal clarity as well as the of and . 31 In that regard, it is settled case-law that, in the absence of Community legislation, it is for the internal legal order of each Member State to designate the competent courts and lay down …

… Thus, it may be held that the Community law of and do not preclude the application of a three-year on the expiry of which a claim seeking to establish State liability under Community law is time-barred. E - Third question 1. Whether the question referred is necessary to enable the referring court to give judgment 96. …

… In this connection, regard must be had to the fact that, although the of and aim to ensure that Community law matters are not subject to less favourable treatment, they do not require preferential treatment over domestic matters. To accord Treaty infringement proceedings legal effects in relation to domestic proceedings would result, however, in preferential treatment as a consequence of the suspension or of the . 4. …

… Furthermore, in my view, the specific function which attaches to Treaty infringement proceedings militates against their resulting in an or suspensory effect in relation to the running of the for liability claims. …

… In order to uphold the effectiveness of the Regulation, it is important to ensure that the rights of the various parties to the case are accorded maximum, and balanced, protection. 66 The date of service may be important for an applicant, for example when the document served constitutes the bringing of proceedings that must be instituted within a mandatory time- or is designed to the running of a . …

… ) and that they cannot render virtually impossible or excessively difficult the exercise of rights conferred by Community law ( of ) (see Rewe, cited above, paragraph 5, Case C-261/95 Palmisani [1997] ECR I-4025, paragraph 27, and Case C-231/96 Edis [1998] ECR I-4951, paragraph 34). …

… settled case-law, in the absence of Community provisions it is for the domestic legal system of each Member State to determine the detailed procedural rules governing actions at law intended to safeguard the rights which individuals derive from the direct effect of Community law (see, inter alia, Case 33/76 Rewe [1976] ECR 1989, paragraph 5). 50 The Court has, however, made it clear that those rules cannot be less favourable than those governing rights which originate in domestic law (principle of …

… It has also been shown that this cannot be either suspended or (it is a ‘délai préfix’ or strict time-). 20. …

… In this connection, while Cofidis and the French Government have no doubt that Article L. 311-37 complies with the of , both dwell at greater length on the of protection, noting that the Court has accepted limitation periods of a year (34) or even of just 30 days (35) as being compatible with that criterion, so that the time-limit under Article L. 311-37 should certainly be regarded as reasonable, particularly since, firstly, the purpose of setting such time-limits …

… But it is also true that, according to the case-law of the Court that I have cited, this freedom may only be exercised subject to the of and of protection, to be considered in the light of the circumstances of individual cases. (42) In the light of what I have said earlier, it seems to me that to impose a limitation period for the determination that a term in a contract is unfair, whether by a court of its own motion or following a plea by the consumer when defending …

… However, as regards the transposition of Community law, the the Court has developed in its consistent case-law must be observed. These are the of and . …

… However, it appears from the judgments referred to above (49) that the of and must be observed, and the specific circumstances and legislative context of the individual case must be taken into account, when considering whether limitation provisions are compatible with Community law. (50) 99. It has already been shown above (51) that the of and apply in particular where there are no Community rules governing a matter. …

… Directive 89/665 does not contain any express provision in that regard. (52) Thus, the decision as to the validity of limitation provisions depends on whether the of and are observed. 100. As regards the of , in the absence of any information to the contrary it is to be assumed that the limitation period relates in the same way to claims to enforce rights under national law as it does to claims to enforce rights under Community law. 101. …

… JUDGMENT OF THE COURT 16 May 2000 (1) (Social policy - Men and women - Equal pay - Membership of an occupational pension scheme - Part-time workers - Exclusion - National procedural rules - of - of ) In Case C-78/98, REFERENCE to the Court under Article 177 of the EC Treaty (now Article 234 EC) by the House of Lords, United Kingdom, for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that court between Shirley Preston and Others and Wolverhampton …

… Where, however, there is a stable relationship resulting from a succession of short-term contracts concluded at regular intervals in respect of the same employment to which the same pension scheme applies, it is possible to fix a precise starting point for the . 70. …

… First, it should be borne in mind that, according to settled case-law, in the absence of relevant Community rules, it is for the national legal order of each Member State to designate the competent courts and to lay down the procedural rules for proceedings designed to ensure the protection of the rights which individuals acquire through the direct of Community law, provided that such rules are not less favourable than those governing similar domestic actions ( of ) and …