European laws invalidate earlier national laws Damages against the State

In R v Secretary of State ex p Factortame,8 the House of Lords referred to the European Court the question of whether or not Community law provides interim protection of rights under Community law in the event of the existence of inconsistent national legislation. The European Court held that Community law required a national court to set aside a rule of national law when that court, considering a question of Community law, believed that the sole obstacle precluding it from granting interim relief was the rule of national law.