Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 20 October 2011.#European Commission v French Republic.#Failure to fulfil obligations - State aid - Aid granted to fish farmers and fishermen - Decision declaring that aid incompatible with the common market - Obligation to recover immediately the aid declared unlawful and incompatible and to inform the Commission - Non-compliance - Absolute impossibility of compliance.#Case C-549/09.

Subject of the case

Re:

Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations – Failure to take the measures necessary to implement Commission Decision 2005/239/EC of 14 July 2004 concerning certain aid measures applied by France to assist fish farmers and fishermen (OJ 2005 L 74, p. 49) – Obligation to recover immediately the aid declared unlawful and incompatible with the common market and to inform the Commission thereof.

Operative part

Operative part

The Court:

1. Declares that, by failing to implement, within the prescribed period, Commission Decision 2005/239/EC of 14 July 2004 concerning certain aid measures applied by France to assist fish farmers and fishermen, by recovering from the recipients of the aid declared unlawful and incompatible with the common market by Articles 2 and 3 of that decision, the French Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under the fourth paragraph of Article 288 TFEU and Article 4 of that decision;

2. Orders the French Republic to pay the costs.