Judgment of the General Court (Third Chamber) of 13 June 2012 — Insula v Commission

(Case T-246/09)

‛Arbitration clause — Financing contracts for research and development projects — MEDIS and Dias.Net contracts — Lack of supporting documents and non-compliance with the contractual requirements in respect of some of the declared expenses — Retention of a sum intended for another co-contractor — Reimbursement of sums advanced — Partial inadmissibility of the action — Counterclaim by the Commission — Partial removal of need to adjudicate in relation to the counterclaim’

1. Proceedings — Referral to the General Court under an arbitration clause — Contract providing for Community financial assistance for a research and development project — Claim for repayment of certain costs — Claim for damages — Counterclaim with claim for default interest — Application of national law — Finding of non-compliance with contractual obligations — Commission’s right to repayment of the advance, plus default interest at the rate applied by the European Central Bank (Art. 238 EC) (see paras 87, 124, 213-216, 288)

2. Proceedings — Referral to the General Court under an arbitration clause — Contract subject to national law — Application of national provisions on jurisdiction — Exclusion (Art. 238 EC) (see para. 88)

3. Proceedings — Referral to the General Court under an arbitration clause — Action challenging the basis of the debt of an institution to its co-contractors — Decision of that institution adopted for the purposes of recovering that debt — Decision constituting writ of execution — Legal nature of such a decision defined by the EC Treaty — Challengeable act on the basis of Article 230 EC (Arts 230 EC, 238 EC and 256 EC; Council Regulation No 1605/2002, Art. 72(2)) (see paras 93-96)

4. Proceedings — Subject-matter of the dispute — Alteration once proceedings have been started — Alteration of the pleas of the action following the adoption of a decision by the defendant institution — Alteration concerning the nature of the action — Prohibition (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 48(2)) (see paras 100-104)

5. Proceedings — Referral to the General Court under an arbitration clause — Action challenging the basis of the debt of an institution to its co-contractors — Counterclaim claiming recovery of that debt — Adoption, during the proceedings, of a decision by that institution to recover the same debt — Interest of the applicant and the defendant in maintaining their claims (Art. 238 EC) (see paras 113-116, 294-302)

6. Proceedings — Production of evidence — Time-limit — Evidence lodged out of time — Conditions (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 48(1)) (see para. 143)

7. Proceedings — Introduction of new pleas during the proceedings — Conditions — Amplification of an existing plea and close link with the latter (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Arts 44(1)(c), and 48(2)) (see para. 199)

8. Proceedings — Application initiating proceedings — Formal requirements — Identification of the subject-matter of the dispute — Brief summary of the pleas in law on which the application is based — Action for compensation for damage caused by a Community institution — Application seeking compensation in the abstract with no explanation in that regard — Inadmissible (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 44(1)(c)) (see paras 221, 262, 270)

Re:

APPLICATION, first, for a declaration that a claim of the Commission of EUR 189 241.64 is unfounded, second, that the Commission be ordered to issue a ‘credit note’ in that amount and, lastly, that the Commission be ordered to pay damages of EUR 212 597, principally, and EUR 230 025, in the alternative.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Dismisses the action brought by the Conseil scientifique international pour le développement des îles (Insula);

2. Declares that there is no need to adjudicate on the counterclaims submitted by the Commission in so far as they seek a declaration that Insula be ordered to pay the principal sum due and the interest thereon under the Dias.Net contract;

3. Orders Insula to pay the Commission the principal sum of EUR 157 983.11, increased by default interest at the rate of 2.75% per annum, from 16 May 2009 until full payment of that principal sum;