Judgment of the General Court (First Chamber) of 8 September 2021 –
AH v Eurofound
(Case T‑630/19)
(Civil service – Members of the contract staff – Psychological harassment – Request for assistance – Action for annulment – Lis pendens – Interest in bringing proceedings – Admissibility – Rule of correspondence between the application and the complaint – Obligation to state reasons – Lack of competence of the author of an act – Error of assessment – Liability – Non-material damage)
1. Actions brought by officials – Interest in bringing proceedings – Action by an official who is the alleged victim of psychological harassment against a refusal to grant a request for assistance – Admissibility
(Staff Regulations of Officials, Art. 91)
(see paras 37-39)
2. EU agencies – European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) – Staff – Adoption of decisions – Competence of the director of Eurofound – Possibility of replacement by the Deputy Director – Scope
(Council Regulation No 1860/76, Art. 53)
(see paras 69-71)
3. Officials – Decision to close without further action an administrative investigation opened in response to a request for assistance in respect of psychological harassment – Obligation to state reasons – Scope
(Art. 296 TFEU; Staff Regulations of Officials, Art. 25)
(see paras 75-82)
4. Officials – Rights and obligations – Internal inquiry into alleged psychological harassment – Requirement of impartiality – Scope – Challenge by the alleged victim – Burden of proof
(Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 41)
(see para. 98)
5. Judicial proceedings – Introduction of new pleas during the proceedings – Conditions – Plea based on matters which have come to light in the course of the procedure – Scope – Plea based on matters which are known and alleged at the time the action was brought – Not included
(Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 84(1) and (2))
(see paras 109-113)
6. Actions brought by officials – Admissibility criteria – Dismissal of an action on the substance without ruling on admissibility – Discretion of the Courts of the Union
(see para. 128)
Re:
| Application under Article 270 TFEU seeking, first, annulment of the decision of Eurofound of 9 November 2018 closing the administrative investigation AI-2018/01 opened following the applicant’s request for assistance in respect of alleged psychological harassment on the part of his superiors, and second, compensation for the non-material damage allegedly suffered by the applicant as a result of that decision. |
Operative part
The Court:
2. | | Orders AH to pay, in addition to his own costs, those incurred by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound). |