Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 21 December 2011 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Conseil d'État - France) - Centre hospitalier universitaire de Besançon v Thomas Dutrueux, Caisse primaire d'assurance maladie du Jura

(Case C-495/10) 

(Directive 85/374/EEC - Liability for defective products - Scope - National rules requiring public healthcare establishments to pay compensation, even when they are not at fault, for damage sustained by a patient as a result of the failure of equipment or products used in the course of treatment)

Language of the case: French

Referring court

Conseil d'État

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Centre hospitalier universitaire de Besançon

Defendants: Thomas Dutrueux, Caisse primaire d'assurance maladie du Jura

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling - Conseil d'État - Interpretation of Article 13 of Council Directive 85/374/EEC of 25 July 1985 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning liability for defective products (OJ 1985 L 210, p. 29) - Liability of public health establishments towards their patients - Permissibility of a national liability scheme which allows an injured person to obtain compensation, even in the absence of fault, for injury caused by the failure of defective products - Limitation of the liability of the provider of services

Operative part of the judgment

The liability of a service provider which, in the course of providing services such as treatment given in a hospital, uses defective equipment or products of which it is not the producer within the meaning of Article 3 of Council Directive 85/374/EEC of 25 July 1985 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning liability for defective products, as amended by Directive 1999/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 1999, and thereby causes damage to the recipient of the service does not fall within the scope of the directive. Directive 85/374 does not therefore prevent a Member State from applying rules, such as those at issue in the main proceedings, under which such a provider is liable for damage thus caused, even in the absence of any fault on its part, provided, however, that the injured person and/or the service provider retain the right to put in issue the producer's liability on the basis of the directive when the conditions laid down by the latter are fulfilled.

____________

¹ - OJ C 30, 29.1.2011.