Judgment of the General Court (Ninth Chamber) of 28 September 2022 –
Leino-Sandberg v Parliament

(Case T‑421/17 RENV)

(Access to documents – Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 – Document relating to a decision refusing a third party full access to trilogue tables relating to the proposal for a regulation of the Parliament and of the Council on Europol and repealing Decisions 2009/371/JHA and 2005/681/JHA – Refusal to grant access – Second indent of Article 4(2) of Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exception for the protection of court proceedings and legal advice)

1.      EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exceptions to the right of access to documents – Refusal to grant access – Obligation to state reasons – Scope

(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Recitals 1, 2, 4 and 11 and Arts 1 and 4)

(see paragraphs 23-25, 27, 28, 30)

2.      EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exceptions to the right of access to documents – Strict interpretation and application

(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4)

(see paragraph 26)

3.      EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exceptions to the right of access to documents – Duty to balance relevant interests

(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Recital 2 and Art. 4)

(see paragraph 29)

4.      EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exceptions to the right of access to documents – Protection of court proceedings – Scope – Documents not drawn up solely for the purposes of court proceedings and not liable to compromise the defence of the author of those documents – Precluded

(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2), 2nd indent)

(see paragraphs 38-41, 48, 53, 54)

Operative part

The Court:

1. Annuls Decision A(2016) 15112 of the European Parliament of 3 April 2017 refusing to grant Ms Päivi Leino-Sandberg access to Decision A(2015) 4931 of the Parliament of 8 July 2015 addressed to Mr Emilio De Capitani;

2. Orders the Parliament to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by Ms Päivi Leino-Sandberg;

3. Orders the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden to bear their own respective costs.