JUDGMENT OF THE EUROPEAN UNION CIVIL SERVICE TRIBUNAL

(Second Chamber)

13 November 2014

Emil Hristov

v

European Commission

and European Medicines Agency (EMA)

‛Civil service — Procedure for selection and appointment of the Executive Director of a regulatory agency — European Medicines Agency (EMA) — Two-stage selection procedure — Pre-selection within the Commission — Appointment by the EMA’s Management Board — Obligation for the EMA’s Management Board to choose the Executive Director from among the candidates shortlisted by the Commission — Action for annulment — Composition of the pre-selection panel — Combination of functions of a member of the pre-selection panel and member of the EMA’s Management Board — Candidates who are members of the EMA’s Management Board included on the list of candidates shortlisted by the Commission — Appointment of the candidate who is a member of the EMA’s Management Board — Duty of impartiality — Infringement — Annulment — Action for damages — Non-material damage severable from the illegality serving as the basis for the annulment — Proof — None’

Application:

under Article 270 TFEU, applicable to the EAEC Treaty pursuant to Article 106a thereof, in which Mr Hristov seeks, first, annulment of a number of decisions adopted by the European Commission in the context of the procedure for selecting the Executive Director of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and of the decision of the EMA’s Management Board of 6 October 2011 appointing that Executive Director, and, second, compensation for the non-material damage allegedly sustained as a result of the adoption of those decisions.

Held:

The European Commission’s decision of 20 April 2011, by which it proposed to the Management Board of the European Medicines Agency a list of four candidates recommended by the pre-selection panel and approved by the Consultative Committee on Appointments, is annulled. The decision of the Management Board of the European Medicines Agency of 6 October 2011 appointing the Executive Director is annulled. The remainder of the action is dismissed. The European Commission and the European Medicines Agency are to bear their own costs and are ordered to each pay half of the costs incurred by Mr Hristov.

Summary

Officials — Recruitment — Procedure for filling a post of director of an EU agency — Pre-selection panel — Analogy with a selection board in a competition (Commission Guidelines related to selection and appointment of Directors of the regulatory and executive agencies as well as of the joint undertakings, para. 7) Officials — Recruitment — Procedure for filling a post of director — Pre-selection panel — Principle of impartiality — Composition — Combination of functions of a member of the pre-selection panel and member of the appointing body — Unlawful (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 726/2004, Arts 64 to 67; Commission Guidelines related to selection and appointment of Directors of the regulatory and executive agencies as well as of the joint undertakings) Officials — Recruitment — Procedure for filling a post of director of an EU agency — Pre-selection panel — Principle of impartiality — Judicial review Actions brought by officials — Judgment annulling a measure — Effects — Annulment of a pre-selected shortlist of candidates in a procedure for filling a post of director of an EU agency — Annulment of the appointment decision