Judgment of the General Court (Eighth Chamber) of 11 July 2018 –
ClientEarth v Commission
(Case T‑644/16)
(Access to documents — Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 — Commission documents relating to the compatibility with EU law of Investor-State Dispute Settlement and the Investment Court System in EU trade agreements — Partial refusal of access — Exception concerning the protection of the public interest as regards international relations — Exception concerning the protection of legal advice — Exception concerning the protection of the decision-making process — Overriding public interest)
1. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Subject-matter — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Strict interpretation and application
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Recital 4 and Arts 1 and 4)
(see paras 19-21)
2. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of the public interest — International relations — Refusal to grant access — Obligation to state reasons — Scope
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4)
(see paras 22, 89)
3. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of the public interest — Judicial review — Scope — Limits
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(1)(a))
(see paras 23-25)
4. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Mandatory exceptions — Prior balancing of the interests at stake — Not included
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(1)(a))
(see para. 23)
5. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of the public interest — International relations — Scope — Documents relating to negotiations for an international commercial agreement — Included
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(1)(a), 3rd indent)
(see paras 36, 37, 47)
6. International agreements — Conclusion — Competence of the Union — Scope — Creation of a court or other entity with competence to rule on the provisions of the agreement — Included
(Arts 21 TEU and 22(1) TEU)
(see paras 39-43)
7. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of the public interest — International relations — Scope — Refusal to divulge documents serving as a basis for the Commission’s proposal in the context of current negotiations on an international agreement — Lawfulness — Requested documents not binding the Commission or representing its official position — Irrelevant
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(1)(a), 3rd indent)
(see paras 45-51, 56-58, 74)
8. Judicial proceedings — Application initiating proceedings — Formal requirements — Identification of the subject-matter of the dispute — Error in designation of the applicable legislation — Irrelevant — Conditions
(Statute of the Court of Justice, Arts 21 and 53, first para.; Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 76(d))
(see para. 64)
9. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Requirement that the institution should examine the documents specifically and individually — Scope — Existence of an earlier request for access concerning the same documents and made by the same applicant — Irrelevant
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2))
(see para. 67)
10. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Refusal based on several exceptions — One of the exceptions well-founded — Sufficient to justify the refusal decision
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4)
(see para. 78)
11. EU institutions — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the principle of access to documents — Obligation to grant partial access to data not covered by the exceptions — Observance of the principle of proportionality
(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(6))
(see paras 82, 83)
Re:
| Application under Article 263 TFEU seeking the annulment of Commission Decision C(2016) 4286 final of 1 July 2016, refusing access to certain documents relating to the compatibility with EU law of Investor-State Dispute Settlement and the Investment Court System in EU trade agreements. |
Operative part
The Court:
2. | | Orders ClientEarth to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by the European Commission. |