Mason: The Advocate General’s Opinion In Apple—Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

Ruth Mason (Virginia; Google Scholar), The Advocate General’s Opinion in Apple: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back, 112 Tax Notes Int'l 1315 (Dec. 4, 2023):

In this article, Mason reviews the advocate general opinion in the case against Ireland for granting illegal state aid to Apple. Advocate General Giovanni Pitruzzella urged Europe’s highest court to vacate Ireland and Apple’s win in the court below and remand the case for what he described as legal errors. She also considers whether Apple could fit into the Gibraltar exception described by the Court of Justice in its Fiat decision.

In the latest salvo in the seemingly endless dispute between member states and the European Commission over tax state aid, Advocate General Giovanni Pitruzzella issued an opinion November 9 advising the Court of Justice of the European Union to remand Apple to the General Court of the European Union (GCEU) for a new judgment.