Action brought on 15 December 2006 - FRA.BO v Commission

(Case T-381/06)

Language of the case: English

Parties

Applicant: FRA.BO SpA (Milan, Italy) (represented by: R. Celli and F. Distefano, lawyers)

Defendant: Commission of the European Communities

Form of order sought

Annul Article 2 of Commission Decision of 20 September 2006 (Case COMP/F-1/38.121 - Fittings - C(2006) 4180 final) relating to a proceeding under Article 81 EC, insofar as it relates to the amount of the fine imposed on the applicant;

reduce the fine imposed on the applicant under the Court's jurisdiction; and

order the Commission to pay the costs of the proceedings, including those of the applicant.

Pleas in law and main arguments

The applicant seeks the partial annulment of Commission Decision C(2006) 4180 final of 20 September 2006 in Case COMP/F-1/38.121 - Fittings, by which the Commission found that the applicant, together with other undertakings, had infringed Article 81 EC and Article 53 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area by fixing prices, agreeing on price lists, agreeing on discounts and rebates, agreeing on implementation mechanisms for introducing price increases, allocating national markets, allocating customers and exchanging other commercial information.

The applicant challenges the contested decision on the following grounds:

-    The applicant claims, first, that the Commission made a manifest error of appreciation and breached fundamental principles of law in making an improper and unlawful application of the principles of the 2002 Leniency Notice¹.

The applicant further claims, that the Commission made a manifest error of appreciation by granting FRA.BO a disproportionately low reduction of 20 per cent under the 1996 Leniency Notice, and infringed the fundamental principles of proportionality, legitimate expectations and duty to state reasons.

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¹ - Commission notice on immunity from fines and reduction of fines in cartel cases (OJ 2002 C 45, p.3)