Judgment of the General Court (Third Chamber) of 9 September 2015 —
Pérez Gutiérrez v Commission

(Case T‑168/14)

Non-contractual liability — Public health — Directive 2011/37/EC — Manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco products — Colour photographs proposed by the Commission as health warnings to appear on tobacco packages — Decision 2003/641/EC — Unauthorised use of the image of a deceased person — Harm suffered personally by the widow of the deceased person

1.                     Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Unlawfulness — Damage — Causal link — Cumulative conditions — No obligation on the court to examine in a given order — Absence of one of those conditions — Claim for compensation dismissed in its entirety (Art. 340, second para., TFEU) (see paras 21, 22)

2.                     Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals — Rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals — Concept — Right to respect for private and family life — Included (Art. 340, second para., TFEU; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 7) (see paras 30-33)

3.                     Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Burden of proof on the applicant — Assessment of the probative value of a document — Criterion — Reliability of evidence produced (Art. 340, second para., TFEU) (see para. 50)

Re:

ACTION for damages seeking, firstly, compensation for the harm allegedly suffered by the applicant as a consequence of the unauthorised use of her late husband’s picture among the photographs proposed by the Commission for the health warnings to be shown on tobacco packages pursuant to the first subparagraph of Article 5(3) of Directive 2001/37/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2001 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco products (OJ 2001 L 194, p. 26) and Commission Decision 2003/641/EC of 5 September 2003 on the use of colour photographs or other illustrations as health warnings on tobacco packages (OJ 2003 L 226, p. 24) and, secondly, the withdrawal of her late husband’s picture and a prohibition on its use within the European Union.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Dismisses the action;

2. Orders Ms Ana Pérez Gutiérrez to pay the costs.