CETA AdminHow and why it came to the legal assessment.
As a backup, possible accelerator and leverage to influence EU decisions, Save the Pigments has decided to take a separate legal route in the matter.
Anyone who has read the REACH Regulation and its annexes has been forced to realize that, as a non-lawyer and non-chemist, one quickly reaches one’s limits. With Michael Dirks (The3Pylons), one of the initiators and petitioners of the Save the Pigments Initiative, we fortunately have a member in our ranks who is internationally one of the most recognized experts in the field of scientific and chemical consideration of tattoo inks. Without his scientific expertise we would look pretty old in the fight against the REACH regulation.
During the last World Congress on Tattoo and Pigment Research (WCTP), Dr. Gerald Renner from Cosmetics Europe gave a very interesting speech and shed some light on the legal background. And so it happened that we contacted Dr. Renner and asked him for an opinion on how to proceed legally.
He provided Save the Pigments, the Council of European Tattoo Associations (CETA) and the European Society of Tattoo and Pigment Research (ESTP) with his detailed assessment of the REACH situation and its formulations. Furthermore, he has established various contacts with Brussels law firms whose departments deal precisely with the REACH issue at EU level.
The aim of the legal assessment
The aim of the legal route is to have a legal assessment of various points of the REACH Regulation prepared by a law firm specializing in EU law. For this purpose the Brussels law firm Steptoe & Johnson was contacted by Martin Siedler (Wildcat) and his Cologne law firm and after a short time an extensive and very meaningful legal assessment was available.
Since the whole process had to be accelerated, Martin went financially in advance for the action. Together with the Council of European Tattoo Associations (CETA), for which we are all very grateful to him.
The costs of the law firm Steptoe & Johnson for the preparation of the Legal Assessment were reimbursed by the Council of European Tattoo Associations to Martin Siedler.
The REACH regulation now has legally identified deficiencies!
The legal assessment was definitely worthwhile. It makes it clear that the REACH Regulation has legal deficiencies. That means: It is illegal! That gives us hope!
Save the Pigments has already managed to open the door to the Austrian parliament with its legal assessment. Here, the government will examine the illegality of the regulation and, in the best case, take action against it.
The task now is to send this legal opinion to as many important decision-makers as possible and thus influence the future decision-making process in our favor.
The legal assessment has already been forwarded to the responsible coordinators of the European Parliament. They are dealing with the agenda for the upcoming EU plenary session. And so they can support the idea of the resolution.
In addition, Ms. Dolors Montserat and the Petitions Committee, which she chairs, have also received the legal assessment from Save the Pigments. So the legal assessment has already officially arrived in the EU Parliament.
It is now important that the CETA, so all European tattoo associations that have received the legal opinion, send it to their respective responsible EU state ministries and ask for clarification. Because we are sure that as good as all EU deputies of the respective countries do not know that the REACH regulation has proven legal deficiencies.
CETA would like to thank Erich Mähnert and Michael Dirks for their tireless commitment to the tattoo industry! If you have not yet supported the petition, it is time to do so!
CETA Admin