Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 29 September 2022 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Fővárosi Törvényszék – Hungary) – Polskie Linie Lotnicze ‘LOT’ S.A. v Budapest Főváros Kormányhivatala

(Case C-597/20) ¹

(Reference for a preliminary ruling – Air transport – Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – Article 16 – Compensation and assistance to passengers – Task of the national body responsible for the enforcement of that regulation – National legislation conferring on that body the power to order an air carrier to pay compensation due to a passenger – Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union – Article 47 – Right to seek remedy before a tribunal)

Language of the case: Hungarian

Referring court

Fővárosi Törvényszék

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Polskie Linie Lotnicze ‘LOT’ S.A.

Defendant: Budapest Főváros Kormányhivatala

Operative part of the judgment

Article 16 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February 2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights, and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 295/91

must be interpreted as meaning that the Member States have the power to authorise the national body responsible for the enforcement of that regulation to compel an air carrier to pay compensation, within the meaning of Article 7 of that regulation, due to passengers under that regulation, where an individual complaint has been made to that national body by a passenger, provided that it is open to that passenger and that air carrier to bring proceedings before the courts.

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¹ OJ C 28, 25.1.2021.