Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2024:823
Date: 2024-11-13
Language of the case: English
Court formation: Fourth Chamber
Subject matter: Provisions governing the Institutions;Access to documents
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded
Origin: Belgium

Judgment of the General Court (Fourth Chamber) of 13 November 2024 – PAN Europe v Commission (Case T‑104/23) ( Access to documents – Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 – Preparatory documents of the Commission relating to a request for internal review of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/2049 as regards the renewal of the approval of the active substance cypermethrin – Partial refusal to grant access – Article 4(2) of Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exception relating to the protection of court proceedings ) 1. 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, but likely adversely to affect the capacity of the institution concerned to defend itself in those proceedings – Included – Conditions (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2), second indent) (see paragraphs 41, 42, 49, 54) 2. EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exceptions to the right of access to documents – Application justified on the basis of the content of the document (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4) (see paragraph 52) 3. EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Request for access concerning environmental information – Regulation No 1367/2006 – Information relating to emissions into the environment – Meaning – Sufficiency of a direct link between the information and the relevant emissions – Not permissible (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1367/2006, recital 2 and Arts 2(1)(d) and 6(1)) (see paragraphs 64-66, 68) 4. EU institutions – Right of public access to documents – Regulation No 1049/2001 – Exceptions to the right of access to documents – Refusal based on several exceptions – One of the exceptions well-founded – Sufficient to justify the refusal decision (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4) (see paragraph 78) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action; 2. Orders Pesticide Action Network Europe (PAN Europe) to pay the costs.