Judgment of the General Court of 18 September 2015 — Miettinen v Council
(Case T-395/13) 1
(Access to documents — Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 — Opinion of the Council’s legal service concerning proposals for a Directive and a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on criminal sanctions for insider dealing and market manipulation — Partial refusal of access — Exception relating to protection of legal advice — Exception relating to protection of the decision-making process)
Language of the case: English
Parties
Applicant: Samuli Miettinen (Espoo, Finland) (represented by: O. Brouwer and E. Raedts, lawyers)
Defendant: Council of the European Union (represented initially by: K. Pellinghelli, P. Plaza García and K. Toomus, and subsequently by: P. Plaza García, A. Jensen and M. Bauer, acting as Agents)
Interveners in support of the applicant : Kingdom of Sweden (represented initially by: A. Falk, C. Meyer-Seitz, U. Persson, E. Karlsson, L. Swedenborg and C. Hagerman, and subsequently: by A. Falk, C. Meyer-Seitz, U. Persson, N. Otte Widgren, K. Sparrman, E. Karlsson, L. Swedenborg and F. Sjövall, acting as Agents); and Republic of Estonia (represented by: N. Grünberg, acting as Agent)
Re:
Application for annulment of the Council decision of 13 May 2013 refusing full access to document No 12979/12 of 27 July 2012 containing an opinion of the Council’s Legal Service relating to the proposals for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on criminal sanctions for insider dealing and market manipulation and a Regulation on insider dealing and market manipulation and other instruments regarding the harmonisation of administrative sanctions in the framework of financial services.
Operative part of the judgment
The Court:
Annuls the decision of the Council of the European Union of 13 May 2013 denying full access to document No 12979/12 of 27 July 2012 containing an opinion of the Council's legal service relating to the proposals for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on criminal sanctions for insider dealing and market manipulation and a Regulation on insider dealing and market manipulation and other instruments regarding the harmonisation of administrative sanctions in the framework of financial services, and the letter of the Council of 23 July 2013;
Orders the Council to bear its own costs and those incurred by Mr Samuli Miettinen;
Orders the Kingdom of Sweden and the Republic of Estonia to bear their own costs.
____________1 OJ C 274, 21.9.2013.