Judgment of the General Court of 12 December 2013 – Nabipour and Others v Council
(Case T-58/12) 1
(Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures against Iran with the aim of preventing nuclear proliferation – Freezing of funds – Restrictions on admission – Obligation to state reasons – Error of law – Error of assessment – Temporal adjustment of the effects of an annulment)
Language of the case: English
Parties
Applicants: Ghasem Nabipour (Tehran, Iran), Mansour Eslami (Madliena, Malta), Mohamad Talai (Hamburg, Germany), Mohammad Moghaddami Fard (Tehran), Alireza Ghezelayagh (Singapore, Singapore), Gholam Hossein Golparvar (Tehran), Hassan Jalil Zadeh (Tehran), Mohammad Hadi Pajand (London, United Kingdom), Ahmad Sarkandi (Al Jaddaf, Dubai, United Arab Emirates), Seyed Alaeddin Sadat Rasool (Tehran), and Ahmad Tafazoly (Shanghai, China) (represented by: S. Kentridge QC, M. Lester, Barrister, and M. Taher, Solicitor)
Defendant: Council of the European Union (represented by: M.-M. Joséphidès, A. Varnav and A. De Elera, acting as Agents)
Re:
Application for annulment, first, of Council Decision 2011/783/CFSP of 1 December 2011 amending Decision 2010/413/CFSP concerning restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2011 L 319, p. 71), of 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), and of Council Regulation (EU) No 267/2012 of 23 March 2012 concerning restrictive measures against Iran and repealing Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 (OJ 2012 L 88, p. 1), in so far as those acts concern the applicants, and, secondly, of Council Decision 2013/270/CFSP of 6 June 2013 amending Decision 2010/413/CFSP concerning restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2013 L 156, p. 10), in so far as that decision concerns the fourth and ninth applicants
Operative part of the judgment
The Court:
Annuls Council Decision 2011/783/CFSP of 1 December 2011 amending Decision 2010/413/CFSP concerning restrictive measures against Iran, in so far as it listed the names of Mr Ghasem Nabipour, Mr Mansour Eslami, Mr Mohamad Talai, Mr Mohammad Moghaddami Fard, Mr Alireza Ghezelayagh, Mr Gholam Hossein Golparvar, Mr Hassan Jalil Zadeh, Mr Mohammad Hadi Pajand, Mr Ahmad Sarkandi, Mr Seyed Alaeddin Sadat Rasool and Mr Ahmad Tafazoly in Annex II to Council Decision 2010/413/CFSP of 26 July 2010 concerning restrictive measures against Iran and repealing Common Position 2007/140/CFSP;
Annuls Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1245/2011 of 1 December 2011 implementing Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 on restrictive measures against Iran, in so far as it listed the names of Mr Nabipour, Mr Eslami, Mr Talai, Mr Fard, Mr Ghezelayagh, Mr Golparvar, Mr Zadeh, Mr Pajand, Mr Sarkandi, Mr Sadat Rasool and Mr Tafazoly in Annex VIII to Council Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 of 25 October 2010 on restrictive measures against Iran and repealing Regulation (EC) No 423/2007;
Annuls Annex IX to Council Regulation (EU) No 267/2012 of 23 March 2012 concerning restrictive measures against Iran and repealing Regulation No 961/2010, in so far as it concerns Mr Nabipour, Mr Eslami, Mr Talai, Mr Fard, Mr Ghezelayagh, Mr Golparvar, Mr Zadeh, Mr Pajand, Mr Sarkandi, Mr Sadat Rasool and Mr Tafazoly;
Annuls Council Decision 2013/270/CFSP of 6 June 2013 amending Decision 2010/413 in so far as it concerns Mr Fard and Mr Sarkandi;
Orders the effects of Decision 2011/783 and of Decision 2013/270 to be maintained as regards Mr Nabipour, Mr Eslami, Mr Talai, Mr Fard, Mr Ghezelayagh, Mr Golparvar, Mr Zadeh, Mr Pajand, Mr Sarkandi, Mr Sadat Rasool and Mr Tafazoly from their entry into force until the annulment in part of Regulation No 267/2012 takes effect;
Dismisses the action as to the remainder;
Orders the Council of the European Union to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by Mr Nabipour, Mr Eslami, Mr Talai, Mr Fard, Mr Ghezelayagh, Mr Golparvar, Mr Zadeh, Mr Pajand, Mr Sarkandi, Mr Sadat Rasool and Mr Tafazoly.
________________________1 OJ C 109, 14.4.2012.