Judgment of the Court of First Instance of 14 December 2005 - Groupe Fremaux and Palais Royal v Council and Commission
(Non-contractual liability of the Community - Incompatibility of the Community regime governing the import of bananas with the rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) - Imposition by the United States of America of retaliatory measures in the form of increased customs duty levied on imports from the Community, pursuant to a WTO authorisation - Decision of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body - Legal effects - Community liability in the absence of unlawful conduct of its institutions - Causal link - Unusual and special damage)
Language of the case: French
Parties
Applicants: Groupe Fremaux SA (Paris, France) and Palais Royal Inc. (Charlottesville, Virginia, United States) (represented by C. Lazarus, F. Prunet and L. Van den Hende, lawyers)
Defendants: Council of the European Union (represented by J. Huber, F. Ruggeri Laderchi and S. Marquardt, acting as Agents) and Commission of the European Communities (represented initially by E. Righini, L. Gussetti and M. de Pauw, and subsequently by P. Kuijper, V. Di Bucci, C. Brown and E. Righini, acting as Agents)
Intervener in support of the defendants: Kingdom of Spain (represented initially by R. Silva de Lapuerta, and subsequently by E. Braquehais Conesa, acting as Agents)
Application for
compensation in respect of the damage allegedly caused by the levying by the United States of America of increased customs duty on imports of the applicants' cotton bed linen, as authorised by the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), following a finding that the Community regime governing the import of bananas was incompatible with the agreements and understandings annexed to the Agreement establishing the WTO
Operative part of the judgment
The Court:
Dismisses the action;
Orders the applicants to bear, in addition to their own costs, the costs incurred by the Council and the Commission;
Orders the Kingdom of Spain to bear its own costs.
____________1 - OJ C 355 of 9.12.2000.