EUROPEAN COMMISSION
LEGAL SERVICE
T
he Director General
Brussels, 25 May 2020
By e-mail:
Mr Johnny Ryan
Brave London
Mindspace Shoreditch, 9
Appold St, London, EC2A 2AP,
United Kingdom
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
Subject:
Request for access to documents
Ref.:
Your e-mails of 2 April 2020, registered 3 April, under references GestDem
2020/1927 and 2020/1931
Dear Mr. Ryan,
I refer to your email above-mentioned by which you request, under Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public
access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents
1:
̶
“documents about the financial cost of legal and related expenses, including permanent
staff cost where relevant, to the Commission of defending DG Comp's decision in Case
AT.39740 concerning Google Shopping, which included a fine of €2.4 billion”, (registered
GestDem 2020/1927);
̶
“documents about the financial cost of legal and related expenses, including permanent
staff cost where relevant, to the Commission of defending DG Comp's decision in Case
AT.40099 concerning Google Android” (registered GestDem 2020/1931).
Your requests concern all documents about the legal and related expenses, including
permanent staff cost, where relevant, incurred by the Commission to defend its decisions in
two competition cases,
i.e. Cases T-612/17 and T-604/18, which are still pending before the
General Court.
In response to your request, I would like to inform you that the Legal Service has not
identified any document relating to the financial costs of legal expenses as indicated in your
requests. Therefore, in accordance with Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/20001, it is
unable to grant any access
2.
1
OJ L145, 31.05.2001, page 43.
2
« [T]his regulation shall apply to all documents held by an institution, that is to say, documents drawn up or
received by it and in its possession, in all areas of activity of the European Union.”
Commission européenne, B-1049 Bruxelles / Europese Commissie, B-1049 Brussel - Belgium. Telephone: (32-2) 299 11 11.
Office: BERL 1/80. Telephone: direct line (32-2) 299 51 50. Fax: (32-2) 295 24 87.
E-mail: xxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Please note that the Rules of Procedure of the Union courts provide which are the expenses
incurred in judicial proceedings that shall be regarded as recoverable costs
3 i.e. those incurred
for the purposes of the proceedings and which are essential for that purpose.
The Commission has not engaged outside counsel to represent it in Cases T-612/17 and
T-604/18 and accordingly it is represented by lawyers who are members of the staff of its
Legal Service. As regards the expenses related to the representation of institutions by their
own officials before the Union’s courts, it is settled case law
4 that only the expenses that can
be separated from the internal activity of an institution are considered to be essential
expenses. Consequently, the only costs that can be recovered when an institution is
represented by its own officials are those such as the travel and subsistence expenses required
by the proceedings. That case law also clarified that remuneration allotted to an official under
the staff regulations is the counterpart of the performance of his or her duties, which includes,
in connection with representation before the Court, the defence of the interests of the
institution which he or she represents.
Furthermore, please be informed that the decisions regarding the costs are given in the
judgment or order which closes the judicial proceedings. Since Cases T-612/17 and T-604/18
are still ongoing before the General Court, the question of the allocation of costs is also
pending.
Should you wish this position to be reconsidered, you should present in writing, within fifteen
working days from receipt of this letter, a confirmatory application to the Commission’s
Secretariat-General at the following address:
European Commission
Secretariat-General
Transparence, Document Management & Access to Documents (SG.C.1)
Berl 7/76
B-1049 Brussels
or by email t
o: xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Yours sincerely,
(
signed electronically)
Luis ROMERO REQUENA
3
Article 144 of the Rules of the Procedure of the Court of Justice; Article 140 of the Rules of the Procedure of
the General Court.
4
Order of the Court of Justice of 7 September 1999, C-409/96 P-DEP,
Commission v. Sveriges Betodlares et
Henrikson, paragraph 12, ECLI:EU:C:1999:389; Order of the Civil Service Tribunal of 12 December 2012,
Case F-12/10DEP,
Petrus Kerstens v. Commission, ECLI:EU:F:2012:183, paragraphs 23-26.
2