260/1996 Coll.



FIND



The Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic



On behalf of the United States



The Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic decided on 17. September 1996 in plenary in the matter

the design of přednostky District Office in Znojmo to cancel generally binding

the Decree of 7 April 2004 town of Znojmo. February 1995 No. 35/1995 on language

implementation of the corporate designations and inscriptions on the territory of the town of Znojmo



as follows:



Decree of the town of Znojmo No. 35/1995 on language design company

marking and inscriptions on the territory of the town of Znojmo, taken by the municipal

the Municipal Board in Znojmo, with effect from 23. February 1995 shall be repealed;

on the date of publication of the finding in the journal of laws.



Justification



1. On 25 April. 10.1995 the Constitutional Court received the proposal přednostky County

Office in Znojmo for revocation generally binding decrees no town of Znojmo.

35/1995 on the language implementation of the corporate designations and inscriptions on the territory

the city of Znojmo.



The Ordinance adopted by the City prosecutor's Office on 7 November. 2.1995 was

posted up from 8. 2. the 1995 to 23. 2.1995, became effective on 23 December 2005. 2.

1995. The Text of the decree is as follows:



"The Decree



No 35/95



On the language implementation of the corporate designations and inscriptions on the territory of the town of Znojmo



Znojmo Town Council pursuant to §§ 16 and paragraph 36. 1 (b). g) of the Act

No. 367/1990 Coll., as amended by law no 410/1992 Coll., on municipalities, adopted

at its meeting on 7 December. February 1995 this Decree:



§ 1



All markings and inscriptions on the territory of the city must be in Czech

language and identified by the Czech name. If the company name or inscription

foreign language, it must be placed after the (under) the inscription (marking) the Czech and

it in no more than half the size, and less significantly in color than the name

(mark).



§ 2



The layout of the inscriptions and corporate designation must correspond to the nature of the

the object and the environment where it is located.



§ 3



The text of the foreign text must be designed and checked the official

translator due to elimination of grammatical errors.



§ 4



1. Failure to comply with the provisions of this Ordinance by natural persons be prosecuted

as a misdemeanor under section 46 and 48 of the Act No. 200/1990 Coll., as amended, and

Add-ins (provincial offences Act), won't be able to act more strictly criminal.



2. Violation of this Decree, legal persons can affect according to § 50

Act No. 367/1990 Coll., as amended by law no 410/1992 Coll. (on municipalities),

fine of up to 100 000 CZK.



§ 5



Final provisions



1. this Decree shall not affect binding procedures resulting from law No.

20/1987 Coll. on State care monument, neither Act No. 455/1991 Coll., on the

trades.



2. language design corporate designations and inscriptions arising before the

effect of this order are all affected operators are required to put into

accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance at its own expense within 30. 6.1995.



3. this Decree shall enter into force on the day following the date of 15 of its

publication. "



The following is the signature of the Deputy Mayor and the signature of the Mayor of the city.



District Office in Znojmo according to the provisions of § 62 para. 1 of Act No. 367/1990

Coll., on municipalities, as amended, suspended by decision of 25 June 2002.

the performance of the above regulation 8.1995 conflict with the cited law.

In Znojmo Town Council at its meeting of 5 November. 9. the 1995

discussed the suspension of the Decree No. 35/1995 and adopted by the

resolution to it at its Decree on language design corporate designations and

inscriptions. Due to this fact brought head District

Office in Znojmo, based on the provisions of § 64 para. 3 of Act No. 182/1993

Coll., on the Constitutional Court, the application for annulment of the contested Decree.



In a letter to the Mayor of the town of Znojmo, which suspends the enforcement of the

the Decree, the suspension is justified by the fact that the generally binding Decree

concerning the labelling of establishments is not a municipality shall be empowered to issue on the basis of

by, since no regulations, that this

the issues it deals with, without authorising-§ 7 para. 3

commercial code, no. 513/1991 SB., § 31 para. 1 and 2 of the trade

Act No. 455/1991 Coll. and section 4, paragraph 4. 1 of the law, laying down the conditions

for the conduct of foreign exchange operations, no. 20/1994 Coll., But not so

do this even within the individual. In this respect, reference is made

the Constitutional Court mistakenly No 35/1994 Coll., according to which the municipality reportedly

authorised to issue generally binding decrees in matters that are within its

separate the scope of, the content of which are legal obligations only in the

the cases referred to in § 14 para. 1 of the law on municipalities. In this provision

There is no permission to impose the obligations enshrined in the matter of communes in labelling

establishments. Of argumentation can be inferred that this is apparently about "the Zdar" award

SP. zn. PL. ÚS 5/93.



The city of Znojmo, represented by the Mayor of the city in its observations on the draft on the

the cancellation of the Decree stated that the city of Znojmo is a frontier town with

a large number of Austrian tourists and therefore began to multiply

cases where the establishment of services and production establishments are referred to

only German inscriptions and Czech citizens are not sufficiently

informed about the services we provide, and in effect, discriminated against.

Due to the fact that this condition was raised in the city series

comments by citizens, the decree in question was adopted.



Town Council then disagrees with the reasons for the proposal přednostky

District Office in Znojmo, according to which it is not for the issue of such

the Decree legal backing. Town Council does not consider the provisions of the

§ 14 para. 1 of the law on municipalities for an exhaustive list of individual

of the village. In addition to the legislative expression of "declaratory"-apparently by

means:-an enumeration of the word "particularly" in the provisions of § 14 para.

1 of the Act, does not preclude the procedure (according to the opinion of the town of Znojmo

the City Council) nor the provisions of § 14 para. 2 of the cited

the law. The city of Znojmu is not known any other provision which would

There are issues in the contested Decree contained. In the opinion of

the city of Znojmo, expressed by the municipal government, so you cannot

the provisions of § 14 para. 1 of the Act interpreted restrictively, in the

narrowing of meaning, but it is necessary to look for ways of making a separate

the city's law, which is currently the provisions of § 14 para. 1 and 2, and section 16 of the Act

on municipalities and allow you to assume.



2. According to the article. 87 para. 1 (b). (b)) of the Constitution of the Czech Republic shall act

The Constitutional Court repealing other laws or parts thereof.

In accordance with the provisions of article. paragraph 79. 3 authorities may, at the

the basis and within the limits of the law to issue legislation if they are to

mandated by law. On the basis of article 87(3)(c). paragraph 104. the Constitution may

of the limits of its competence to issue generally binding decrees.



As regards the contested generally binding Decree town of Znojmo No. 35/1995,

on the language implementation of the corporate designations and inscriptions on the territory of the city

Znojmo, the Constitutional Court found that does not comply with the above requirements

The Constitution of the CZECH REPUBLIC, as neither the cited the law on municipalities, as amended, or

Trade Act, the commercial code and the law on the conditions for

the implementation of foreign exchange activity is not authorised or

permissions for municipalities to issue such a decree, whether separate or

by the.



Trade Act and the commercial code leaves it up to the discretion of each

entrepreneurs, what the customers wants and how, within their

legal options to address. The entrepreneur is in particular obliged to make

legal acts under one business name, which is registered in the commercial

the register. Otherwise, however, are corporate inscriptions and markings are included in

market competition, in which does not apply the principle of official language. As is well known,

are corporate banners and newspaper advertisements in foreign languages in the world

common and also the font size of these inscriptions is not regulated.



From the introductory provisions of the Ordinance, which contains a reference to the provisions of § 36

paragraph. 1 (b). f) [apparently mistakenly stated) (a g)], the provisions of

section 16 of the Act on municipalities, as well as the observations of the urban

the Municipal Council can be inferred that the Ordinance was validly adopted

the municipal government, and that this is a decree that was consciously

taken to a separate area of responsibility. This is confirmed by the fact that

order by can only issue the City Council and

not the Town Council [paragraph 45 (a) l) of the Act on municipalities]. If

If it were a devolved competence, would be head of the district

the Office actively open to the submission of the proposal (article 62, paragraph 2, of the law on

the municipalities) and was, therefore, according to the provisions of § 43 para. 1 (b). (d)) of the

The Constitutional Court, apparently by an unauthorized person. However, for apparently unjustified

person to the submission of the proposal should be considered as the applicant only in those

cases where the assessment of locus standi produces no

the doubt.



The core of the problem lies in the definition of individual municipalities. The law on the

the municipalities shall establish very generally in § 13 para. 1 that the municipality manages its

the matter separately. In § 14 para. 1 then sets out a non-exhaustive

enumeration of things that fall within the scope of the separate municipalities, including

the issue generally binding decrees in matters of individual competence. In

paragraph. 2 lays down the General tasks, or other sections of this scope. In


this context, it is important that the provisions of § 13 para. 2 and § 16 para. 2

the law on municipalities, which show that the municipality shall exercise independent

the scope of and in fulfilling its tasks in this area must be guided by the law and

the generally binding legal regulations issued by the central authorities to their

implementation. This means that the municipality when considering the issue generally binding

decrees in the field of individual cannot be based on just out of

an enumeration in section 14 of the Act on municipalities. The area that you may commune

separately edit, is narrowed down to activities that are

special laws conferred on the authorities of the State administration, the sections which are

governed by other regulations, and all things modified otherwise

regulations on the higher degree of normative hierarchy.



At this point, it is for some of the previous findings of the constitutional recall

the Court, which, in principle, the same issue of the definition of separate

the scope of the municipality. Specifically, it is possible to point out the finding of the Constitutional Court

PL. ÚS 5/93, where, inter alia, States that according to the article. 4 (4). 1 of the Charter

fundamental rights and freedoms can be imposed only on the basis of obligations

the law and within the limits and according to the article. 2 (2). 3 no one shall be forced to

do what the law does not oblige. From these provisions, then it is necessary for the area

the scope of the municipality concluded that in cases where the municipality acts as

body for citizen obligations by unilateral orders and bans,

apply those provisions of the Charter of fundamental rights and freedoms. The municipality therefore

can issue generally binding decrees, whose contents are the legal

obligations, only on the basis and within the limits of the law. To issue generally binding

the Ordinance, which are legal obligations, it is, therefore, a village

authorised only in case of explicit legal authorization.



From the foregoing, that the enumeration given in § 14 para. 1 of the law on

municipalities, as amended, it is necessary having regard to the statutory mandate to

the issue generally binding decrees of municipalities interpret restrictively. His

demonstrative diction, as well as the universality of the definition of the autonomous

the scope of the village contained in § 14 para. 2 of the Act on municipalities, it is necessary to

relate only to the scope of an autonomous community, in which the municipality

is not acting as an entity, specifying the responsibilities for the citizen by unilateral

prohibitions and commands. In this sense, it is possible to point out the findings of the constitutional

the Court under spisovými marks pl. ÚS 26/93, pl. ÚS 38/93, pl. ÚS 38/93,

PL. ÚS 13/95 and PL. ÚS 28/95.



Due to the fact that neither the law on trades No. 455/1991

Coll., as amended, or Act No 513/1991 Coll., the commercial code, in

as amended, or Act No. 20/1994 Coll., laying down the conditions for

the implementation of foreign exchange activity, the issue in question

labelling of establishments dealing with nezmocňují the village to issue generally

binding rules in this particular field, the Constitutional Court found the proposal

přednostky District Office in Znojmo reason and generally binding

Decree No. 35/1995, the town of Znojmo.



The President of the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic:



JUDr. Kessler v. r.