JUDGMENT OF THE COURT FOR FIRST INSTANCE (Fifth Chamber)

23 January 2003

Case T-53/00

Serena Angioli

v

Commission of the European Communities

‛Officials — Action for annulment — Internal competition for the establishment of members of the temporary staff — Non-inclusion on the list of suitable candidates — Confidentiality of the work of the selection board’

Full text in French II-73

Application for:

annulment of the Commission's decision of 28 May 1999 not to include the applicant on the list of suitable candidates in Internal Competition COM/TA/2/98 for the establishment of members of the temporary staff, and annulment of all subsequent measures taken by the selection board for the competition and by the appointing authority.

Held:

The application is dismissed. The parties are to bear their own costs.

Summary

Officials — Competitions — Decision not to include a candidate on the list of suitable candidates — Obligation to state reasons — Principle of transparency — Scope with regard to the requirement that the proceedings of the selection board should be secret

In a situation where certain candidates in a competition have been unlawfully excluded from taking part in the written tests for that competition, but where that unlawfulness only became apparent once the tests had taken place, there is no breach of the principle of equal treatment or of the prohibition of discrimination if the appointing authority organises a second series of written tests with different questions from those asked in the first series, which is open only to those candidates who were unlawfully eliminated and who used the means of appeal available within the time-limits laid down in the Staff Regulations. In doing so it does not breach any provision of the Staff Regulations and is acting in compliance with the principle of procedural economy in order to do its best to restore the rights of those concerned, while duly complying with the principles of legal certainty and sound administration. (see paras 30-36) See: T-294/97 Carrasco Benítez v Commission [19981 ECRSC I-A-601 and II-1819

In order to meet the aim ascribed by Article 27 of the Staff Regulations to any recruitment procedure, which is to secure for the institution the services of officials of the highest standard of ability, efficiency and integrity, it is necessary to recruit officials on the broadest possible basis. The expression ‘competition internal to the institution’ should therefore be taken to mean any persons employed by the institution, in whatever capacity, without any need to distinguish between them according to the section of the budget by which their post is covered. (see paras 50-52) See: 16/64 Rauch v Commission of the EEC [1965] ECR 135; 265/81 Giannini v Commission [19821 ECR 3865, para. 7: T-56/89 Bataille and Others v Parliament [1990] ECR II-597. para. 41

A selection board's assessment of candidates' knowledge and ability, which is of a comparative nature, and its decision that a candidate has failed a test constitute a value judgment on the candidate's performance in the test. They therefore fall within the wide margin of discretion accorded to the board, and the Community judicature has no jurisdiction to review it unless the rules which govern the proceedings of the selection board have been infringed. (see para. 91) See: Campograndeand Others v Commission, cited above, para. 53; Camara Alloisio and Others v Commission, cited above, para. 90; Michaël-Chiou v Commission , cited above, para. 48; Pimley-Smith v Commission, cited above, para. 63; Kaps v Court of Justice. cited above, para. 38