Order of the General Court (Seventh Chamber) of 27 March 2014 — Ecologistas en Acción-CODA v Commission

(Case T‑603/11)

Access to documents — Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 — Documents relating to the carrying out of an industrial project on a site protected under Directive 92/43/EEC — Documents originating from a Member State — Opposition by the Member State — Refusal of access — Exception relating to the protection of the purpose of inspections, investigations and audits — Exception relating to the protection of court proceedings — Environmental information — Regulation (EC) No 1367/2006 — Action manifestly lacking any foundation in law

1.                     Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Documents originating from a Member State — Power of the Member State to request the institution not to disclose documents — Competence of the institution — Review of the merit of the refusal of access having regard to the exceptions set out in that regulation — Scope — Obligation to state reasons (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Arts 4(1) to (3) and 5, 7 and 8) (see paras 33, 34, 38-44, 47)

2.                     Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of court proceedings — Scope (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2), second indent) (see paras 63, 64)

3.                     Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of court proceedings — Overriding public interest justifying the disclosure of documents — Concept — Subjective interest of the person concerned to participate in a national decision-making procedure — Exclusion (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2), second indent) (see paras 72, 74-76)

Re:

APPLICATION for annulment of the Commission’s decision of 23 September 2011 refusing to grant the applicant access to certain documents concerning approval of the project to construct a port in Granadilla (Tenerife, Spain), sent by the Spanish authorities to the Commission pursuant to Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OJ 1992 L 206, p. 7).

Operative part

1. The action is dismissed.

2. Ecologistas en Acción-CODA is ordered to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by the European Commission.

3. The Kingdom of Spain is ordered to bear its own costs.