''Unilever Italia SpA v Central Food SpA'' (2000) is an
EU law case, concerning the conflict of law between a national legal system and European Union law.
Facts
Unilever sold
olive oil
Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...
to Central Food, which refused to pay on the ground the oil did not comply with Italian law. This was a ‘technical regulation’ under
Directive 83/189. Unilever claimed damages for breach of contract. The question was referred to the European Court of Justice, whether the Directive precluded enforcement of the contract.
Judgment
The
European Court of Justice
The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Un ...
upheld Unilever's claim that the law could not be applied. The Directive was a procedural bar to adopting national legislation.
See also
*
European Union 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 valu ...
Notes
{{reflist, 2
European Union food law
Italian case law
Unilever