CJEU: Mandatory communications metadata retention only justified for fighting serious

Joined Cases C‑293/12 and C‑594/12. Court reports – general ECLI identifier: ECLI:EU:C:2014:238 Expand all Collapse all Languages and formats available Language of the case Language BG ES CS DA DE ET EL EN FR GA HR IT LV LT HU MT NL PL PT RO SK SL FI SV HTML EN Toggle Dropdown BG ES CS DA DE ET EL EN FR GA HR IT LV LT HU MT NL PL PT RO SK SL FI SV PDF EN Toggle Dropdown BG ES CS DA DE ET EL EN FR GA HR IT LV LT HU MT NL PL PT RO SK SL FI SV Document published in the digital reports of cases. They have official status. Multilingual display Language 1 Language 2 Please choose Language 3 Please choose Display Text JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Grand Chamber) 8 April 2014 ( *1 ) ‛Electronic communications — Directive 2006/24/EC — Publicly available electronic communications services or public communications networks services — Retention of data generated or processed in connection with the provision of such services — Validity — Articles 7, 8 and 11 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union’ In Joined Cases C‑293/12 and C‑594/12, REQUESTS for a preliminary ruling under Article 267 TFEU from the High Court (Ireland) and the Verfassungsgerichtshof (Austria), made by decisions of 27 January and 28 November 2012, respectively, received at the Court on 11 June and 19 December 2012, in the proceedings Digital Rights Ireland Ltd (C‑293/12) v Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Commissioner of the Garda Síochána, Ireland, The Attorney General, intervener: Irish Human Rights Commission, and Kärntner Landesregierung (C‑594/12), Michael Seitlinger, Christof Tschohl and others, THE COURT (Grand Chamber), composed of V. Skouris, President, K. Lenaerts, Vice-President, A. Tizzano, R. Silva de Lapuerta, T. von Danwitz (Rapporteur), E. Juhász, A. Borg Barthet, C.G.

Fernlund and J.L. da Cruz Vilaça, Presidents of Chambers, A. Rosas, G. Arestis, J.-C. Bonichot, A. Arabadjiev, C. Toader and C. Vajda, Judges, Advocate General: P. Cruz Villalón, Registrar: K. Malacek, Administrator, having regard to the written procedure and further to the hearing on 9 July 2013, after considering the observations submitted on behalf of: — Digital Rights Ireland Ltd, by F. Callanan, Senior Counsel, and F. Crehan, Barrister-at-Law, instructed by S. McGarr, Solicitor, — Mr Seitlinger, by G. Otto, Rechtsanwalt, — Mr Tschohl and Others, by E. Scheucher, Rechtsanwalt, — the Irish Human Rights Commission, by P. Dillon Malone, Barrister-at-Law, instructed by S. Lucey, Solicitor, — Ireland, by E. Creedon and D. McGuinness, acting as Agents, assisted by E. Regan, Senior Counsel, and D. Fennelly, Barrister-at-Law, — the Austrian Government, by G. Hesse and G. Kunnert, acting as Agents, — the Spanish Government, by N. Díaz Abad, acting as Agent, — the French Government, by G. de Bergues and D. Colas and by B. Beaupère-Manokha, acting as Agents, — the Italian Government, by G. Palmieri, acting as Agent, assisted by A. De Stefano, avvocato dello Stato, — the Polish Government, by B. Majczyna and M. Szpunar, acting as Agents, — the Portuguese Government, by L. Inez Fernandes and C. Vieira Guerra, acting as Agents, — the United Kingdom Government, by L. Christie, acting as Agent, assisted by S. Lee, Barrister, — the European Parliament, by U. Rösslein and A. Caiola and by K. Zejdová, acting as Agents, — the Council of the European Union, by J. Monteiro and E. Sitbon and by I. Šulce, acting as Agents, — the European Commission, by D. Maidani, B. Martenczuk and M. Wilderspin, acting as Agents, after hearing the Opinion of the Advocate General at the sitting on 12 December 2013, gives the following Judgment 1 These requests for a preliminary ruling concern the validity of Directive 2006/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 on the retention of data generated or processed in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communications services or of public communications networks and amending Directive 2002/58/EC ( OJ 2006 L 105, p. 54 ). 2 The request made by the High Court (Case C‑293/12) concerns proceedings between (i) Digital Rights Ireland Ltd. (‘Digital Rights’) and (ii) the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, the Commissioner of the Garda Síochána, Ireland and the Attorney General, regarding the legality of national legislative and administrative measures concerning the retention of data relating to electronic communications. 3 The request made by the Verfassungsgerichtshof (Constitutional Court) (Case C‑594/12) concerns constitutional actions brought before that court by the Kärntner Landesregierung (Government of the Province of Carinthia) and by Mr Seitlinger, Mr Tschohl and 11 128 other applicants regarding the compatibility with the Federal Constitutional Law (Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz) of the law transposing Directive 2006/24 into Austrian national law.