Judgment;Information — ECLI:EU:T:2024:496
Date: 2024-07-17
Language of the case: French
Subject matter: External relations;Common foreign and security policy
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded;Action for damages - unfounded

Judgment of the General Court (Ninth Chamber, Extended Composition) of 17 July 2024 – Mhana v Council (Case T‑207/22) (1) ( Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures in view of the situation in Syria – Freezing of funds and economic resources – Restriction on entry into the territory of the Member States – List of persons, entities and bodies subject to the freezing of funds or the restriction on entry into the territory of the Member States – Inclusion and maintenance of the applicant’s name on the list – Heir of a person already subject to restrictive measures – Rights of the defence – Error of assessment – Proportionality – Right to property – Non-contractual liability ) 1. Judicial proceedings – Decision or regulation replacing the contested measure in the course of proceedings – Application to modify the application – Conditions (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 86(1)) (see paragraphs 25, 29) 2. Judicial proceedings – Decision or regulation replacing the contested measure in the course of proceedings – Application to modify the application – Obligation for the applicant to accompany that application with modified pleas in law and arguments – None, except where there are substantial differences between the two measures – General Court’s obligation of verification (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 86(1) and (4)) (see paragraphs 35-37) 3. Judicial proceedings – Modification of the pleas in the course of proceedings – Formal requirements – Brief statement of the pleas in law on which the application is based – Transposition of the initial pleas in law – Conditions (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 86(4)) (see paragraphs 38, 39) 4. EU law – Principles – Rights of the defence – Right to effective judicial protection – Restrictive measures – Obligation to disclose individual and specific grounds for the decisions adopted – Right to be heard prior to the adoption of such measures – Limitations – Conditions (Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 41(2)(a); Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2022/242, Annex; Council Regulations No 36/2012 and No 2022/237) (see paragraphs 51-54, 56, 58, 61) 5. EU law – Principles – Rights of the defence – Right to be heard – No obligation on the institutions to adhere to the point of view of the parties concerned – Obligation to reply to all the arguments of the parties – Absence (Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 41(2)) (see paragraph 67) 6. European Union – Judicial review of the legality of the acts of the institutions – Restrictive measures against Syria – Scope of the review – Proof that the measure is well founded – 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 (Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 47; Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/242 and (CFSP) 2023/1035, Annex; Council Regulations No 36/2012, No 2022/237 and No 2023/1027) (see paragraphs 75-81) 7. European Union – Judicial review of the legality of the acts of the institutions – Restrictive measures against Syria – Scope of the review – Inclusion of the applicant on the list annexed to the contested decision on account of her membership of the Assad or Makhlouf families – Documents available to the public – Probative value (Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 47; Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/242 and (CFSP) 2023/1035, Annex; Council Regulations No 36/2012, No 2022/237 and No 2023/1027) (see paragraphs 82, 85, 86) 8. Common foreign and security policy – Specific restrictive measures against certain persons and entities in view of the situation in Syria – Decision 2013/255/CFSP and Regulation No 36/2012 – Assumption that influential businessmen and women engaged in activities in Syria and members of the Assad and Makhlouf families support the Syrian regime – Whether permissible – Conditions (Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2015/1836, Arts 27(1) and (2)(a) and (b) and 28(1) and (2); Council Regulations No 36/2012 and No 2015/1828, Art. 15(1)(a) and (1a)(b)) (see paragraphs 88-91, 93) 9. Common foreign and security policy – Specific restrictive measures against certain persons and entities in view of the situation in Syria – Decision 2013/255/CFSP and Regulation No 36/2012 – Assumption that members of the Assad and Makhlouf families support the Syrian regime – Whether permissible – Conditions – Rebuttable presumption – No evidence to the contrary (Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2015/1836, Arts 27(1) to (3) and 28(1) to (3); Council Regulations No 36/2012 and 2015/1828, Art. 15(1)(a), (1a)(b) and (1b)) (see paragraphs 92, 94-109, 114, 115) 10. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures against Syria – Freezing of the funds of and restrictions on the admission of persons, entities or bodies associated with the Syrian regime – Restrictions on the right to property – No breach of the principle of proportionality (Arts 5(4) and 29 TEU; Art. 215 TFEU; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Arts 17 and 52(1); Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/242 and (CFSP) 2023/1035, Art. 28(6); Council Regulations No 36/2012, No 2022/237 and No 2023/1027, Art. 16) (see paragraphs 120-144, 148) 11. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Unlawfulness – Damage – Causal link – Cumulative conditions (Art. 340, second para., TFEU) (see paragraphs 152, 156, 157) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action; 2. Orders Ms Ghada Mhana to pay the costs. 1 OJ C 237, 20.6.2022.