Agreement relating to the privileges and immunities of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in France

The Agreement regulates the establishment of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in France.

The Laboratory shall have immunity from jurisdiction and execution, except: (à) to the extent that the Laboratory shall have expressly waived such immunity in a particular case; (b) in respect of a civil action by a third party for damage arising from an accident caused by a motor vehicle belonging to, or operated on behalf of, the Labora
tory or in respect of a motor traffic offense involving such a vehicle; (c) in respect of contracts (other than those concluded in accordance with the Staff Regulations) without the arbitration clause referred to in Article 24; (f) in respect of an enforcement of an arbitration award made under Articles 24 or 26 of this Agreement; (e) in the event of an attachment order in respect of the salaries, wages and emoluments owed by the Laboratory to a member of its staff (Article 4).

The staff members of the Laboratory shall have, even after they have left the service of the Laboratory, immunity from jurisdiction in respect of acts, including words written and spoken, performed by them in their official capacity and within the limits of their authority; this immunity shall not apply, however, in the case of a motor traffic offense committed by a staff member of the Laboratory, nor in the case of damage caused by a motor vehicle belonging to or driven by a staff member (Article 15). the Director-General or the person referred to in paragraph 1 (b) of Article VII of the Laboratory Agreement shall be accorded privileges and immunities to which diplomatic agents as defined in Article 1 (e) of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations are accorded (Article 17).

The Director-General has the right and the duty to waive such immunity when it is preventing the carrying out of justice and when it is possible to dispense with the immunity without prejudicing the interests of the Laboratory. In respect of the Director-General or the person referred to in paragraph 1 (b) of Article VII of the Laboratory Agreement, the Council may waive such immunity (Article 21).

The Laboratory shall co-operate at all times with the competent authorities of the French Republic in order to facilitate the proper administration of justice, to ensure the observance of police, public health and labour regulations and regulations concerning handling of explosives and inflammable material, the care of animals kept for experimental purposes or other similar national legislation, and to prevent any abuse of the privileges, immunities and facilities provided for in this Agreement (Article 22).