Judgment;Information — ECLI:EU:T:2023:26
Date: 2023-02-01
Language of the case: French
Court formation: First Chamber
Subject matter: External relations;Provisions governing the Institutions;Common foreign and security policy
Procedure: Action for damages - unfounded;Action for damages - inadmissible

Judgment of the General Court (First Chamber) of 1 February 2023 – Klymenko v Council (Case T‑470/21) (1) (Non-contractual liability – Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – List of the persons, entities and bodies subject to the freezing of funds and economic resources – Limitation – Partial inadmissibility – Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals – Non-material damage – Fact of damage – Causal link) 1. Actions for damages – Limitation period – Starting point of the limitation period – Liability for an individual measure – Non-material damage – Date of appearance of the prejudicial effects of the act (Statute of the Court of Justice, Arts 46 and 53, first para.; Council Decisions (CFSP) 2015/364 and 2016/318; Council Regulations 2015/357 and 2016/311) (see paragraphs 52-57) 2. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Sufficiently serious breach of EU law – Discretion of the institution when adopting the measure – Assessment of whether the act or conduct of the institution is illegal – Assessment of whether there is a sufficiently serious breach of EU law – Conditions relating to the adoption of restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Included (Art. 340, second para., TFEU; Council Decision 2014/119/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2017/381, 2018/333, 2019/354, 2020/373 and 2021/394, Annex; Council Regulations No 208/2014, Annex I, 2017/374, 2018/326, 2019/352, 2020/370 and 2021/391) (see paragraphs 58, 59, 68, 78, 80, 87, 95, 97-103) 3. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Sufficiently serious breach of EU law – Discretion of the institution when adopting the measure – Assessment of whether the act or conduct of the institution is illegal – Necessity of taking contextual and temporal factors into consideration (Art. 340, second para., TFEU) (see paragraphs 67, 83) 4. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Unlawfulness – Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of EU law – Rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals – Concept – Conditions relating to the adoption of restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Included (Art. 340, second para., TFEU; Council Decision 2014/119/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2017/381, 2018/333, 2019/354, 2020/373 and 2021/394, Annex; Council Regulations No 208/2014, Annex I, 2017/374, 2018/326, 2019/352, 2020/370 and 2021/391) (see paragraphs 69-72) 5. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Unlawfulness – Sufficiently serious breach of EU law – Annulment of one or more acts of an institution – Irrefutable evidence of a sufficiently serious breach – None (Art. 340, second para., TFEU) (see paragraphs 73-77) 6. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Decision to freeze funds – Adopted or maintained on the basis of a judicial procedure carried out by the authorities of a third State concerning the misappropriation of public funds or abuse of office by a public office-holder – Conditions – National decision adopted in accordance with the rights of the defence and the right to effective judicial protection – Obligation on the competent EU authority to establish, in the event of challenge, that the reasons relied on against the persons or entities concerned are well founded – Council’s obligation to verify observance of the rights in question – Infringement (Council Decision 2014/119/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2017/381, 2018/333, 2019/354, 2020/373 and 2021/394, Annex; Council Regulations No 208/2014, Annex I, 2017/374, 2018/326, 2019/352, 2020/370 and 2021/391) (see paragraphs 84, 90-93) 7. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Decision to freeze funds – Adopted or maintained on the basis of a judicial procedure carried out by the authorities of a third State concerning the misappropriation of public funds or abuse of office by a public office-holder – Whether permissible – Condition – National decision adopted in accordance with the rights of the defence and the right to effective judicial protection – Council’s verification obligation – Obligation to state reasons – Scope (Council Decision 2014/119/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2017/381, 2018/333, 2019/354, 2020/373 and 2021/394, Annex; Council Regulations No 208/2014, Annex I, 2017/374, 2018/326, 2019/352, 2020/370 and 2021/391) (see paragraphs 89, 94) 8. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Actual and certain damage – Assessment – Criteria – No actual and certain harm (Art. 340, second para., TFEU; Council Decision 2014/119/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2021/394, Annex; Council Regulations No 208/2014, Annex I, and 2021/391) (see paragraphs 109, 113, 115, 122, 125) 9. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Damage – Duty of the injured person to show reasonable diligence in order to limit the extent of the damage (Art. 340, second para., TFEU) (see paragraph 111) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action as in part inadmissible and in part unfounded; 2. Orders Mr Oleksandr Viktorovych Klymenko to bear his own costs and to pay those incurred by the Council of the European Union; 3. Orders the European Commission to bear its own costs. 1 OJ C 412, 11.10.2021.