Judgment of the General Court (Eighth Chamber) of 12 July 2018 –
Pirelli & C. v Commission
(Case T‑455/14)
(Competition — Agreements, decisions and concerted practices — European market for power cables — Decision finding an infringement of Article 101 TFEU — Single and continuous infringement — Imputability of the infringement — Presumption — Obligation to state reasons — Fundamental rights — Proportionality — Equal treatment — Beneficium ordinis seu excussionis — Unlimited jurisdiction)
1. Competition — Fines — Decision imposing fines — Obligation to state reasons — Scope — Indication of the reasons which led the Commission to hold a parent company jointly and severally liable for payment of the fine imposed on its subsidiaries
(Art. 296 TFEU)
(see paras 39-60)
2. Competition — EU rules — Infringements — Attribution — Parent company and subsidiaries — Economic unit — Criteria for assessment — Presumption of dominant influence exercised by parent company over its wholly-owned or almost wholly-owned subsidiaries — Infringement of the principle of individual responsibility — None — Infringement of the presumption of innocence — None
(Art. 101 TFEU; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 48)
(see paras 66-75)
3. Competition — EU rules — Infringements — Attribution — Parent company and subsidiaries — Economic unit — Criteria for assessment — Presumption of dominant influence exercised by parent company over its wholly-owned or almost wholly-owned subsidiaries — Infringement of the right to property — None
(Art. 101 TFUE et 345 TFUE)
(see paras 78-85)
4. Competition — Administrative procedure — Observance of the rights of the defence — General duty of care incumbent on any undertaking — Obligation to ensure conservation of the necessary evidence in the event of legal or administrative actions
(Art. 101 TFEU)
(see paras 88-92)
5. Competition — EU rules — Infringements — Attribution — Parent company and subsidiaries — Economic unit — Criteria for assessment — Presumption of dominant influence exercised by parent company over its wholly-owned or almost wholly-owned subsidiaries — Evidential obligations of the company seeking to rebut that presumption — Factors insufficient to rebut the presumption
(Art. 101 TFEU)
(see paras 99-101)
6. Competition — EU rules — Infringements — Attribution — Parent company and subsidiaries — Economic unit — Criteria for assessment — Presumption of dominant influence exercised by parent company over its wholly-owned or almost wholly-owned subsidiaries — Breach of principle of proportionality — None
(Art. 101 TFEU)
(see paras 106-111)
7. Judicial proceedings — Application initiating proceedings — Formal requirements — Brief summary of the pleas in law on which the application is based — Plea not supported by precise arguments — Inadmissibility
(Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 76)
(see paras 141, 142)
8. Competition — Fines — Amount — Determination — Judicial review — Unlimited jurisdiction of the EU judicature — Scope — Unlimited jurisdiction limited to assessments under the Commission’s power to impose penalties — Determination of the share of the fine to be borne by the joint and several co-debtors — Jurisdiction of the national courts
(Art. 261 TFEU; Council Regulation No 1/2003, Art. 31)
(see para. 148)
9. Competition — Fines — Joint and several liability for payment — Scope — Attribution to the parent company of the infringing conduct of its subsidiary — Consequences for the parent company in the event of annulment or amendment of the Commission’s decision
(Art. 101 TFEU)
(see paras 150-158)
Re:
| Application under Article 263 TFEU for the annulment of Commission Decision C(2014) 2139 final of 2 April 2014 relating to a proceeding under Article 101 [TFEU] and Article 53 of the EEA Agreement (Case AT.39610 — Power cables) in so far as it concerns the applicant and, in the alternative, a reduction of the fine imposed on the applicant. |
Operative part
The Court:
2. | | Orders Pirelli & C. SpA to bear its own costs and to pay those of the European Commission; |
3. | | Orders Prysmian Cavi e Sistemi Srl to bear its own costs. |