Judgment of the General Court (Second Chamber) of 21 December 2021

Data

Court: General Court

Case date: 21 december 2021

Verdict

Judgment of the General Court (Second Chamber) of 21 December 2021 –
HB v Commission

(Case T‑796/19)

"(Public service contracts - Provision of technical assistance services to the Ukrainian authorities - Decision to reduce the amount of the contract and to recover the amounts already paid - Action for annulment and for damages - Act forming part of a purely contractual framework from which it is inseparable - No arbitration clause - Inadmissibility - No heads of damage that are separable from the contract)"

Actions for annulmentAdmissibility criteriaConsidered of the Court’s own motion

(Art. 263 TFEU)

(see para. 48)

Actions for annulmentAction relating in reality to a contractual disputeApplication for the annulment of a decision to reduce the amounts due under a contract and to recover the amounts unduly paidContract containing a jurisdiction clause conferring jurisdiction on the national courtLack of jurisdiction of the EU judicatureInadmissibility

(Arts 263, 272 and 274 TFEU; Council Regulation No 1605/2002, Arts 102 and 103; Commission Regulation No 2519/97, Art. 22)

(see paras 49-53, 66, 67)

Actions for annulmentActionable measuresConceptMeasures producing binding legal effectsAssessment of those effects by reference to the substance of the measure

(Art. 263 TFEU)

(see para. 60)

Acts of the institutionsRegulationsDirect applicability

(Art. 288, second para., TFEU)

(see para. 72)

Non-contractual liabilityConditionsUnlawfulnessDamageCausal linkCumulative conditions

(Art. 340, second para., TFEU)

(see para. 94)

Non-contractual liabilityConditionsUnlawfulnessInfringement of a contractual provisionNot included

(Art. 340, second para., TFEU)

(see para. 95)

Re:

(i) Application under Article 263 TFEU seeking annulment of Commission Decision C(2019) 7318 final of 15 October 2019 to reduce the amounts due under contract TACIS/2006/101-510 and to recover the amounts unduly paid and (ii) application under the second paragraph of Article 340 TFEU seeking, first, reimbursement of any amounts recovered by the Commission on the basis of that decision, together with late-payment interest, and second, symbolic compensation for the non-material harm allegedly suffered by the applicant.

Operative part

The Court:

Dismisses the action as inadmissible, in so far as it seeks annulment of Commission Decision C(2019) 7318 final of 15 October 2019 to reduce the amounts due under contract TACIS/2006/101-510 and to recover the amounts unduly paid;

Dismisses the action as unfounded, in so far as it seeks to establish non-contractual liability on the part of the European Union;

Orders the European Commission to pay the costs, including those relating to the interim proceedings.