Type: Judgment

Authority: European Authorities: Euopean Union' Court of Justice

Date: 04/28/2015

Subject: The Court dismissed the appeal of affirming that legal situation of the appellants is not directly affected by the contested regulations. Even if the General Court made an error of law, because it did not examine whether the above regulations were of direct concern to the appellants and as it based its finding that the action was inadmissible on the fact that those regulations entailed implementing measures, this error of law is not such as to entail the setting aside of the judgment under appeal as regards the inadmissibility of the action against those regulations. As regards the argument which the appellants derive from Article 47 of the Charter, it appears from settled case-law that that article is not intended to change the system of judicial review laid down by the Treaties, and particularly the rules relating to the admissibility of direct actions brought before the Courts of the European Union, as is apparent also from the Explanation on Article 47 of the Charter, which must, in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 6(1) TEU and Article 52(7) of the Charter, be taken into consideration for the interpretation of the Charter. The Court clarified that judicial review of compliance with the European Union legal order is ensured not only by the Court of Justice, but also by the courts and tribunals of the Member States. In that connection, the Court emphasised that, in proceedings before the national courts, individual parties have the right to challenge before the courts the legality of any decision or other national measure relative to the application to them of a European Union act of general application, by pleading the invalidity of such an act. It follows that references on validity constitute, like actions for annulment, means for reviewing the legality of European Union acts. As regards persons who do not fulfil the requirements of the fourth paragraph of Article 263 TFEU for bringing an action before the Courts of the European Union, it is for the Member States to establish a system of legal remedies and procedures which ensure respect for the fundamental right to effective judicial protection. The Court therefore concluded that natural or legal persons may institute proceedings against an act which is not addressed to them and entails implementing measures only if that act is of direct and individual concern to them. As regards the second of those conditions, the Court clarified that persons other than those to whom a decision is addressed may claim to be individually concerned only if that decision affects them by reason of certain attributes which are peculiar to them or by reason of circumstances in which they are differentiated from all other persons and by virtue of these factors distinguishes them individually just as in the case of the person addressed

Parties: T & L Sugars e Sidul Açúcares c. Commissione

Classification: Justice - Art. 47 Justice: remedy - Justice: effective

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