Avis juridique important

Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 9 August 1994. - Nicolas Dreessen v Conseil National de l'Ordre des Architectes. - Reference for a preliminary ruling: Conseil d'appel d'expression française de l'ordre des architectes - Belgium. - Recognition of qualifications in the field of architecture. - Case C-447/93. European Court reports 1994 Page I-04087

Summary Parties Grounds Decision on costs Operative part

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Freedom of movement for persons ° Freedom of establishment ° Freedom to provide services ° Architects ° Recognition of diplomas and other qualifications ° Diplomas and other qualifications allowing the pursuit of activities as an architect by virtue of acquired rights ° Diploma not included in the exhaustive list under Directive 85/384/EEC ° Excluded

(Council Directive 85/384/EEC, Art. 11(a), fourth indent)

A diploma awarded in 1966 by the "Allgemeiner Hochbau" department of the Staatliche Ingenieurschule fuer Bauwesen, Aachen, cannot be equated with the diplomas referred to in the fourth indent of Article 11(a) of Directive 85/384/EEC on the mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications in architecture, including measures to facilitate the effective exercise of the right of establishment and freedom to provide services.

The diploma in question cannot be recognized at Community level since the transitional system set out in Chapter III of the directive, intended to ensure observance of rights acquired in the field of architecture, is characterized by an exhaustive list of the diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications of each Member State which are eligible for recognition, and since with respect to colleges of engineering in Germany such recognition is limited to diplomas awarded by departments of architecture and the diploma in question was not awarded by such a department.

In Case C-447/93,

REFERENCE to the Court under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty by the Conseil d' Appel d' Expression Française de l' Ordre des Architectes, Liège (Belgium), for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that tribunal between

Nicolas Dreessen

and

Conseil National de l' Ordre des Architectes

on the interpretation of Article 11 of Council Directive 85/384/EEC of 10 June 1985 on the mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications in architecture, including measures to facilitate the effective exercise of the right of establishment and freedom to provide services (OJ 1985 L 223, p. 15),

THE COURT (Fourth Chamber),

composed of: M. Diez de Velasco (Rapporteur), President of the Chamber, C.N. Kakouris and P.J.G. Kapteyn, Judges,

Advocate General: M. Darmon,

Registrar: D. Louterman-Hubeau, Principal Administrator,

after considering the written observations submitted on behalf of:

° N. Dreessen, by E. Duyster, of the Eupen Bar,

° the Conseil National de l' Ordre des Architectes, by Y. Hannequart and F. Moises, of the Liège Bar,

° the German Government, by E. Roeder, Ministerialrat in the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, acting as Agent,

° the Spanish Government, by A. Navarro González, Director-General for Community Legal and Institutional Coordination, and M. Bravo-Ferrer Delgado, Abogado del Estado, of the State Legal Department for Matters before the Court of Justice, acting as Agents,

° the Commission of the European Communities, by M.J. Jonczy, Legal Adviser, acting as Agent,

having regard to the Report for the Hearing,

after hearing the oral observations of Mr Dreessen, the Conseil National de l' Ordre des Architectes, the Spanish Government and the Commission at the hearing on 1 June 1994,

after hearing the Opinion of the Advocate General at the sitting on 29 June 1994,

gives the following

Judgment

1 By order of 17 November 1993, received at the Court on 19 November 1993, the Conseil d' Appel d' Expression Française de l' Ordre des Architectes (French Language Appeals Committee of the Architects' Association), Liège (Belgium), referred to the Court for a preliminary ruling under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty a question on the interpretation of Article 11 of Council Directive 85/384/EEC of 10 June 1985 on the mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications in architecture, including measures to facilitate the effective exercise of the right of establishment and freedom to provide services (OJ 1985 L 223, p. 15).

2 That question was raised in proceedings between Nicolas Dreessen and the Conseil National de l' Ordre des Architectes (National Council of the Architects' Association).

3 Mr Dreessen, who is of Belgian nationality and resides in Belgium, studied for an engineer' s diploma in building construction ("Ingenieur-Urkunde, Fachrichtung Hochbau") at the Staatliche Ingenieurschule fuer Bauwesen Aachen (Aachen State Civil Engineering College). He received his diploma on 16 February 1966 and was then entitled to describe himself as "Ingenieur (grad.)".

4 From 1 August 1966 until 1991, in other words for 25 years, Mr Dreessen worked in Belgium as a salaried architect in various firms of architects. After the bankruptcy of his last employer, he applied on 12 December 1991 to the Ordre des Architectes de la Province de Liège (Architects' Association of the Province of Liège) for his name to be entered on the register of that association, so that he could practise as a self-employed architect. The Council of the Architects' Association of the Province of Liège rejected his application by a decision of 29 April 1993 on the ground that his diploma was not equivalent to a diploma awarded by a department of architecture within the meaning of the directive.

5 Mr Dreessen appealed against that decision to the Conseil d' Appel d' Expression Française de l' Ordre des Architectes on 25 May 1993, arguing that his right to be put on the register of the Architects' Association derived from Articles 11(a) and 12 of the directive.

6 The Conseil d' Appel d' Expression Française de l' Ordre des Architectes considered that the outcome of the dispute depended on a question concerning the interpretation of Community law and, by decision of 17 November 1993, stayed the proceedings and requested the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling on

"the interpretation of the expression 'Architektur/Hochbau' department used in Article 11 of Directive 85/384/EEC on the mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications in architecture, and for a ruling on whether a diploma awarded in 1966 by the 'Allgemeiner Hochbau' department of the Staatliche Ingenieurschule fuer Bauwesen Aachen must be treated as equivalent to a diploma awarded by the 'Architektur' department for the purposes of Article 11 of the directive".

7 Under Article 10 of the directive, each Member State is to recognize the diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications set out in Article 11, awarded by other Member States to nationals of the Member States, where such nationals already possessed these qualifications at the time of notification of the directive or their studies leading to such diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications commenced during the third academic year at the latest following such notification, even if those qualifications do not fulfil the minimum requirements laid down in Chapter II, by giving them, as regards the taking up and pursuit of the activities referred to in Article 1, the same effect within its territory as the diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications which it awards in architecture.

8 Under the fourth indent of Article 11(a) of the directive, the diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications referred to in Article 10 include, in Germany, the diplomas (Pruefungszeugnisse) awarded before 1 January 1973 by the departments of architecture of Ingenieurschulen, accompanied by a certificate from the competent authorities to the effect that the person concerned has passed a test of his formal qualifications in accordance with Article 13.

9 The question of interpretation raised by the fourth indent of Article 11(a) is whether that provision is capable of covering the engineer' s diploma in Allgemeiner Hochbau (general construction) awarded to Mr Dreessen on 16 February 1966.

11 The transitional system, which is applicable to this case, is characterized by an exhaustive list of the diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications of each Member State which are eligible for recognition.

12 With respect to colleges of engineering in Germany, recognition is limited to the diplomas awarded by departments of architecture. Mr Dreessen' s diploma was not awarded by such a department.

13 Consequently, having regard to the wording of the fourth indent of Article 11(a) of the directive, the diploma in question cannot be recognized at Community level.

14 The fact that the former colleges of engineering (Ingenieurschulen), which did not have departments of archictecture, were incorporated as from 1971 into Fachhochschulen whose diplomas form part of the system of recognition introduced by the directive does not militate against that conclusion. As the Advocate General has rightly stated, if that designation was incorrect or incomplete, it was up to the Member State in question, that is, the Federal Republic of Germany, to seek and obtain an amendment to the directive in order to correct that error or omission.

15 Accordingly, the answer to the national tribunal' s question must be that a diploma awarded in 1966 by the "Allgemeiner Hochbau" department of the Staatliche Ingenieurschule fuer Bauwesen, Aachen, cannot be equated with the diplomas referred to in the fourth indent of Article 11(a) of the directive.

Costs

16 The costs incurred by the German and Spanish Governments and by the Commission of the European Communities, which have submitted observations to the Court, are not recoverable. Since these proceedings are, for the parties to the main proceedings, a step in the action pending before the national tribunal, the decision on costs is a matter for that tribunal.

On those grounds,

THE COURT (Fourth Chamber),

in answer to the question referred to it by the Conseil d' Appel d' Expression Française de l' Ordre des Architectes, Liège (Belgium), by decision of 17 November 1993, hereby rules:

A diploma awarded in 1966 by the "Allgemeiner Hochbau" department of the Staatliche Ingenieurschule fuer Bauwesen, Aachen, cannot be equated with the diplomas referred to in the fourth indent of Article 11(a) of Council Directive 85/384/EEC of 10 June 1985 on the mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications in architecture, including measures to facilitate the effective exercise of the right of establishment and freedom to provide services.