Notice for the OJ

 

Action brought on 27 January 2003 by Comunidad Autónoma de Andalucía against Commission of the European Communities

    (Case T-29/03)

    (Language of the case: Spanish)

An action against the Commission of the European Communities was brought before the Court of First Instance of the European Communities on 27 January 2003 by Comunidad Autónoma de Andalucía, Seville (Spain), represented by Carmen Carretero Espinosa de los Monteros, lawyers.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

(annul the decision of 11 November 2002 of the Director General of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) which, as an internal service of the Commission of the European Communities, declares inadmissible the complaint lodged by the Junta de Andalucía.

Pleas in law and main arguments

The applicant in the present proceedings contests the rejection of the complaint submitted by Counsellor for Agriculture and Fisheries to the Director General of the Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) after becoming aware of the existence of Report IO/2000/7057 concerning the investigations carried out by OLAF into possible irregularities in the olive oil sector in Spain, concentrating in particular on the territory of the Comunidad Autónoma de Andalucía.

In support of its arguments, the applicant alleges:

(infringement of the principles of legality, in that OLAF's activities covered areas over which there is no judicial oversight, and of equality, inasmuch as such conduct discriminated against any legal or natural person who is not an official, agent or staff of the Community institutions, who alone may lodge administrative complaints against OLAF's conduct.

(infringement of the fundamental right of defence.

(that OLAF must accept the complaint in issue by analogy with the provisions of Article 14 of Regulation No 1073/1994, and reply to the substantive questions raised in the aforementioned complaint.

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