Order of the General Court (Fourth Chamber) of 20 November 2012 — Shahid Beheshti University v Council

(Case T‑120/12)

Annulment action — Common foreign and security policy — Restrictive measures against Iran to prevent nuclear proliferation — Freezing of funds — Period allowed for commencing proceedings — Lateness — Inadmissible

1.                     Actions for annulment — Actionable measures — Concept — Measures producing binding legal effects — Letter of an institution to inform the applicant of the adoption of certain measures and their grounds and to send him a copy of those measures — Not included (Art. 263 TFEU) (see paras 22, 23)

2.                     Plea of illegality — Incidental nature — Main action inadmissible — Inadmissibility of the plea (Art. 277 TFEU) (see para. 24)

3.                     Actions for annulment — Time limits — Point from which time starts to run — Measure entailing restrictive measures against a person or body — Date of communication of the grounds for the measure (Art. 263, sixth para., TFEU; Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 102(1) and (2)) (see paras 26, 30, 34)

4.                     Proceedings — Time limit for instituting proceedings — Claim barred by lapse of time — Unforeseeable circumstances or force majeure — Concept (Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 45, second para.) (see paras 27, 43, 45, 48, 49)

5.                     Acts of the institutions — Decision — Notification to the registered office of the addressee — Regularity — No obligation on the institution to notify the relevant person or service in accordance with the addressee’s internal rules (Art. 297 TFEU) (see paras 37, 38, 40, 47)

6.                     Proceedings — Time limit for instituting proceedings — Period allowed for distance — Flat-rate nature — No infringement of the principle of equal treatment in relation to parties established in non-member countries distant from the Court (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 102(2)) (see paras 51-53)

7.                     Acts of the institutions — No general obligation to inform the addressees of measures of the judicial remedies available and of the time limits (see para. 55)

8.                     Proceedings — Admissibility of actions — Judged by reference to the situation when the application was lodged — Decision replacing the contested decision during the proceedings — Adaptation of initial forms of order sought and pleas in law — Possibility subject to the admissibility of the initial application (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 48(2)) (see para. 57)

Re:

APPLICATION for annulment of Council Decision 2011/299/CFSP of 23 May 2011 amending Decision 2010/413/CFSP concerning restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2011 L 136, p. 65), Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 503/2011 of 23 May 2011 implementing Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 on restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2011 L 136, p. 26), Council Decision 2011/783/CFSP of 1 December 2011 amending Decision 2010/413/CFSP concerning restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2011 L 319, 71), Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1245/2011 of 1 December 2011 implementing Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 on restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2011 L 319, p. 11), as far as those acts concern the applicant, and the decision contained in the Council’s letter sent to the applicant on 5 December 2011.

Operative part

1. The action is dismissed as inadmissible.

2. Shahid Behesti University is ordered to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by the Council of the European Union.