Judgment of the General Court (Third Chamber) of 9 September 2014 — MasterCard and Others v Commission

(Case T‑516/11)

‛Access to documents — Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 — Documents relating to a study of the costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods — Documents drawn up by a third party — Refusal of access — Exception relating to the protection of the decision-making process — Exception relating to the protection of the commercial interests of a third party’

1. Actions for annulment — Natural or legal persons — Interest in bringing proceedings — Action against a decision by an institution refusing access to documents — Admissibility (Art. 263, fourth para., TFEU) (see paras 34, 40)

2. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Subject-matter — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Strict interpretation and application (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, recitals 4 and 11, and Arts 1 and 4) (see paras 44-47)

3. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Requirement that the institution should examine the documents specifically and individually — Scope (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4) (see para. 50)

4. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of the decision-making process — Conditions — Concrete, actual and serious detriment to that process — Refusal based on the need to protect the process against external pressures — Lawfulness — Conditions (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(3), first and second paras) (see paras 62, 66, 67, 71)

5. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of commercial interests — Refusal to grant access — Obligation to state reasons — Scope (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2), first indent) (see paras 81-84)

6. Actions for annulment — Competence of the EU judicature — Claim seeking that directions be issued to an institution — Claim for a declaratory judgment — Inadmissibility (Art. 263 TFEU) (see paras 94, 95)

Re:

ACTION for annulment of the Commission decision of 12 July 2011 refusing the applicants access to certain documents drawn up by a third party relating to a study of the costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Annuls the decision of the European Commission of 12 July 2011 refusing MasterCard, Inc., MasterCard International, Inc. and MasterCard Europe access to certain documents drawn up by a third party relating to a study of the costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods in so far as it refuses access to the documents relating to: — costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods (inception report of 2 June 2009); — costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods — part 1 of the methodology report of 28 September 2009 [revised version incorporating comments received from stakeholders and the Competition Directorate-General (DG) of the European Commission]; — in-depth interview test results on costs of payments: analyses of the in-depth interviews held in the Netherlands, Hungary and the United Kingdom, 15 January 2010 (version provided on 9 March 2010); — draft online questionnaire, 8 March 2010; — results and conclusions of the internet feasibility test: draft report, 24 May 2010;

2. Orders the Commission to pay the costs.

Judgment of the General Court (Third Chamber) of 9 September 2014 — MasterCard and Others v Commission

(Case T‑516/11)

‛Access to documents — Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 — Documents relating to a study of the costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods — Documents drawn up by a third party — Refusal of access — Exception relating to the protection of the decision-making process — Exception relating to the protection of the commercial interests of a third party’

1. Actions for annulment — Natural or legal persons — Interest in bringing proceedings — Action against a decision by an institution refusing access to documents — Admissibility (Art. 263, fourth para., TFEU) (see paras 34, 40)

2. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Subject-matter — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Strict interpretation and application (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, recitals 4 and 11, and Arts 1 and 4) (see paras 44-47)

3. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Requirement that the institution should examine the documents specifically and individually — Scope (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4) (see para. 50)

4. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of the decision-making process — Conditions — Concrete, actual and serious detriment to that process — Refusal based on the need to protect the process against external pressures — Lawfulness — Conditions (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(3), first and second paras) (see paras 62, 66, 67, 71)

5. Institutions of the European Union — Right of public access to documents — Regulation No 1049/2001 — Exceptions to the right of access to documents — Protection of commercial interests — Refusal to grant access — Obligation to state reasons — Scope (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1049/2001, Art. 4(2), first indent) (see paras 81-84)

6. Actions for annulment — Competence of the EU judicature — Claim seeking that directions be issued to an institution — Claim for a declaratory judgment — Inadmissibility (Art. 263 TFEU) (see paras 94, 95)

Re:

ACTION for annulment of the Commission decision of 12 July 2011 refusing the applicants access to certain documents drawn up by a third party relating to a study of the costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Annuls the decision of the European Commission of 12 July 2011 refusing MasterCard, Inc., MasterCard International, Inc. and MasterCard Europe access to certain documents drawn up by a third party relating to a study of the costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods in so far as it refuses access to the documents relating to: — costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods (inception report of 2 June 2009); — costs and benefits to merchants of accepting different payment methods — part 1 of the methodology report of 28 September 2009 [revised version incorporating comments received from stakeholders and the Competition Directorate-General (DG) of the European Commission]; — in-depth interview test results on costs of payments: analyses of the in-depth interviews held in the Netherlands, Hungary and the United Kingdom, 15 January 2010 (version provided on 9 March 2010); — draft online questionnaire, 8 March 2010; — results and conclusions of the internet feasibility test: draft report, 24 May 2010;