Breach of EU law not published in Czech cannot be punished, court rules

Czech authorities cannot charge firms and individuals with the breach of European law if that law was not published in Czech at the time of the breach. A spokesperson for the Supreme Administrative Court in Brno made the announcement on Wednesday, adding that the ruling could have an influence on dozens of cases here in the Czech Republic. The ruling was made by the European Court of Justice, which recently solved a dispute between the Czech-owned firm Skoma-Lux, and the Customs and Excise office in Olomouc, Moravia. The European Court decided in favour of the firm, which complained that it had been fined for breaching a regulation which was not published in Czech at the time.