''Reyners v Belgium'' (1974
Case 2/74is an
EU law
European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its val ...
case, concerning the
free movement of services in the European Union.
Facts
Jean Reyners was a Dutch national with a degree in law. He applied for admission to the Bar of Belgium but was refused on the grounds that he lacked Belgian nationality. He claimed that this breached the Treaty's provisions on free movement of services, now Article 56
TFEU
The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) is one of two treaties forming the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU), the other being the Treaty on European Union (TEU). It was previously known as the Treaty Establishi ...
.
The Belgian
Conseil d'Etat asked the
European Court of Justice (ECJ) whether the legal profession of ''avocat'' was wholly exempt under the Art 51
TFEU
The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) is one of two treaties forming the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU), the other being the Treaty on European Union (TEU). It was previously known as the Treaty Establishi ...
official authority exception, given that part of the business was concerned with exercise of official authority. The
Luxembourg government also argued that the whole profession should be exempt, given that it was "connected organically" to the public
administration of justice
The administration of justice is the process by which the legal system of a government is executed. The presumed goal of such an administration is to provide justice for all those accessing the legal system. The phrase is also commonly used to d ...
.
Advocate general Mayras gave an opinion that "official authority" is "the power of enjoying the prerogatives outside the general law, privileges of official power, and powers of coercion over citizens".
Judgment
The European Court of Justice held that Article 49 TFEU was directly effective, even though directives had not been adopted. It laid down a precise result to be achieved. The advocate profession was not exempted from Article 49 under Article 51, because judicial exercise of power was left intact. There needed to be a single community definition and that the exemption could not be construed more broadly than would fit its purpose. If specific activities involving exercise of official authority are severable from the rest of a profession, then Article 51 cannot apply to exempt the whole lot.
See also
* ''
Van Binsbergen v Bestuur van de Bedrijfvereniging voor de Metaalnijverheid''
*
European Union law
Notes
{{Italic title
European Union services case law
1974 in case law
1974 in the European Economic Community
Legal history of Belgium
Belgium–Netherlands relations