In its judgment delivered on 5 March 1996, the court of nine justices "en banc" reaffirmed the right of reparation, and stated that it existed irrespective of whether the provision of Community law in question has direct effect. Furthermore, the principle applies to any case where a member state breaches Community law, irrespective of which organ of the state was responsible for the breach. The ECJ rejected the contentions that the right to reparation required the introduction of legislation by the EU, and that the availability of damages should be decided, in each case, on the basis of the national law of the state in question.