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Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy to sign, in the interest of the European
Community, the Protocol amending that Convention,
21
2) Council Decision of 8 March 2004, authorising Member States that are
Contracting Parties to the Paris Convention of 29 July 1960 on Third Party
Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy to ratify, in the interest of the European
Community, the Protocol amending that Convention, or to accede to it,
22
3) Council Decision of 8 November 2007, authorising the Republic of Slovenia to
ratify, in the interest of the European Community, the Protocol of 12 February
2004 amending the Paris Convention of 29 July 1960 on Third-Party Liability
in the Field of Nuclear Energy.
23
Through the first two decisions the Council authorised the Member States who
are contracting parties to the Paris Convention to sign the Protocol of 2004,
24
as
well as ratifying or acceding to it, if possible not later than in the year 2006. Austria,
Ireland and Luxembourg, who do not take part in the Paris Convention, did not sign
the Protocol of 2004 and are consequently not addressed by the two decisions.
Further, Slovenia signed the Protocol on 12 February 2004, before its accession
to the European Union. Since the Decision of 8 March 2004 was addressed only
to certain Member States, Slovenia could not, upon its accession to the European
Union on 1 May 2004, be considered an addressee thereof by virtue of Article 53 of
the Act of Accession of 2003. Consequently, the only objective of the decision was
to place Slovenia on the same level as Member States addressed by previous decision
making of the Council.
3.2 Most important implications of the existing decision making
The three mentioned decisions do have considerable implications mainly with
regard to following issues: They clarify the relation between the provisions of the
Paris Convention as Amended by the Protocol of 2004 (hereinafter “
the Amended
Paris Convention
”) and the
Brussels Regulation
concerning the application of the rules
on jurisdiction and enforcement of judgements. Further, they contain an explicit
time schedule for ratification of the Amended Paris Convention by those Member
States which are a Signatory to the Protocol of 2004. Last, but not least, they also
21
OJ [2003]L 338/30.
22
OJ [2004]L 97/53.
23
OJ [2007]L 294/23.
24
Until 1 July 2007, the decision did not bind Denmark, even though it is a party to the Paris Convention,
because it enjoyed an opt-out of EC rules on jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement of judgments
in civil and commercial matters. Since that time, two agreements were concluded between Denmark
and the European Community, extending the provisions of the regulations on jurisdiction, recognition
and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters affecting Denmark. See Agreement
between the European Community and the Kingdom of Denmark on jurisdiction, recognition and
enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters [2005]
OJ L 299/61 and
Agreement between
the European Community and the Kingdom of Denmark on the service of judicial and extrajudicial
documents in civil or commercial matters [2005]
OJ L 299/53.