ABSTRACT
A. Public morality. A Member State enjoys a margin of discretion to defi ne the requirements of public morality in its territory but is prohibited from applying double standards of morality;
B. Public policy. This refers to the protection of the fundamental interests of society. This is potentially a very broad derogation but has rarely been successful;
C. Public security. This concerns the safeguarding of the institutions of a Member State, its essential public services and the survival of its population. This ground has rarely been relied upon by Member States;
D. Protection of the health and life of humans, animals and plants. In order to successfully rely on this derogation a Member State must show that there is a genuine risk to health and life. Additionally, a Member State may invoke the precautionary principle (see point 6 below);
E. Protection of national treasures which possess artistic, historic or archaeological value. So far this derogation has never been successfully relied upon; and,
F. Protection of industrial and commercial property. Article 36 TFEU recognises that intellectual property rights (IPRs) may constitute MEQRs. The ECJ made a distinction between the existence of IPRs, which is protected under Article 345 TFEU, and their exercise, which is subject to the requirements set out in Articles 34 and 36 TFEU, depending upon the specifi c subject matter of the particular IPR. The benefi t of the specifi c subject-matter was described in Case 15/74 Centrafarm as the exclusive right of a holder of IPRs to fi rst marketing of the protected product, whether this marketing is direct or by means of the grant of licences to third parties, in more than one Member State of the EEA. Once a holder has had the benefi t of the specifi c subject-matter of the IPR, his right is exhausted. Consequently, he cannot rely on the protection of IPRs provided for under the national law of a Member State to prevent parallel imports of the protected goods which have lawfully been marketed in any other Member State of the EEA by him or with his consent. However, the principle of exhaustion does not apply to parallel imports of protected products coming from outside the EEA.
