Action brought on 1 December 2023 – Huhtamaki Holding v Commission

(Case T-1145/23)

Language of the case: English

Parties

Applicant: Huhtamaki Holding Sàrl (Senningerberg, Luxembourg) (represented by: M. Struys, F. Pili and H. de Cazotte, lawyers)

Defendant: European Commission

Form of order sought

The applicant claims that the Court should:

annul the implied Decision of the European Commission resulting from the European Commission’s silence pursuant to Article 8(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council ¹ , which refused the applicant’s confirmatory application of 31 August 2023 for access to documents under Regulation No 1049/2001 (‘the contested decision’);

order the Commission to pay the costs of this procedure.

Pleas in law and main arguments

In support of the action, the applicant relies on two pleas in law.

First plea in law, alleging that the Commission violated the requirements to state reasons laid down in Article 296 TFEU and the applicant’s right to good administration provided for in Article 41 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Second plea in law, alleging that, in the hypothetical event that the Commission were to submit that the reasoning of the contested decision is set out in its reply of 11 August 2023 under Article 7(1) of Regulation No 1049/2001:

the contested decision would still violate the requirements to state reasons (first limb of the second plea); and

the contested decision would be based on a wrong interpretation of Regulation No 1049/2001, i.e. the reasoning of the Commission would be wrong on the substance (second limb of the second plea).

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¹ Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents (OJ 2001 L 145, p. 43).