La notion de participation a l'exercice de l'autorite publique article 55 du traite de rome
Institution:
Toulouse 1Disciplines:
Directors:
Abstract EN:
The article 55 allows an exception to the basic objectives of the treaty: the freedom of establishment and the freedom of providing services in the european community. In fact, this article states that "are excluded [. . . ], the activities which in that state are connected, even occasionally, with the exercise of official authority". As some of the terms employed by the article were not clearly and exactly defined, numerous difficulties appeared to which the european court didn't answer. Nevertherless, the case law of the european court on the scope of the article 48 (4), which provides that the free movement fo workers shall not apply to employment in the public service, gives us some important information for the interpretation of the article 55. In this present work, after a thorough study, we were able to give answers and to conclude that the notion of official authority must be defined by community law rather than by national law, and that the definition should be formal. In the community meaning, the exercice of official authority is the exercice of prerogatives of public authority, which means that an unilateral enforceable act has been performed by either the judicial, the legislative, the regulatory or the executive power. Sometimes, such prerogatives are delegated by the states to a legal entity or a natural person which exercise independent activities. If a salaried can sometimes exercise such activities, the notion of independent activities is nevertherless to be given a restrictive interpretation to prevent the member states from reserving whole professions to their nationals. Finally,it is only under some conditions that these activities can be excluded from the freedom of establishment and the freedom of providing services. In fact, the exception of the article 55 must be restricted to the activities which in themselves involve a direct and specific connection to the exercise of official authority. In other words, the state must have conferred explicitly and formally to an individual the power of performing independently an unilateral enforceable act, without subjecting this individual to a close monitoring. Only such a restrictive interpretation can respect the spirit of the treaty.
Abstract FR:
L'article 55 du traite de rome apporte une derogation aux principes fondamentaux de liberte d'etablissement et de libre prestation des services dans la communaute, en disposant que "sont exceptees [. . . ], en ce qui concerne l'etat membre interesse, les activites independantes participant, dans cet etat, meme a titre occasionnel, a l'exercice de l'autorite publique". De nombreuses difficultes sont soulevees par l'absence de definition claire et exacte de certains des termes de cet article, a laquelle la cour de justice n'a pas remedie. Toutefois sa jurisprudence sur l'article 48 paragraphe 4, qui permet aux etats membres d'exclure de la libre circulation des travailleurs les emplois dans l'administration publique, contient des indices utiles pour l'interpretation de l'article 55. Dans le present travail une etude approfondie a permis de donner une serie de reponses, et de conclure que la notion d'autorite publique est une notion non pas nationale mais communautaire : sa definition doit donc etre formelle. Ainsi, au sens communautaire, l'exercice de l'autorite publique est l'exercice de prerogatives de puissance publique, c'est-a-dire qu'un acte ayant force executoire est pris par le pouvoir judiciaire, legislatif, reglementaire ou executif. Les etats deleguent parfois de telles prerogatives a des personnes physiques ou a des personnes morales exercant des activites independantes. Si de telles activites peuvent donc dans certains cas etre exercees par des salaries, la notion d'activites independantes doit cependant etre interpretee restrictivement pour eviter que des professions entieres ne soient reservees par les etats membres a leurs nationaux. Enfin, ces activites ne peuvent etre exclues de la libre circulation que si certaines conditions sont reunies : elles doivent participer directement et specifiquement a l'exercice de l'autorite publique. Autrement dit, l'etat doit avoir delegue de facon expresse et formelle a une personne physique ou morale le pouvoir de prendre de facon autonome des actes unilateraux executoires sans la soumettre a une surveillance etroite. Seule cette interpretation restrictive permet de respecter l'esprit du traite.