Judgment of the General Court (Second Chamber) of 16 May 2019 –

Bank Tejarat v Council

(Case T‑37/17)

(Non-contractual liability — Common foreign and security policy — Restrictive measures against Iran — Freezing of funds — Restriction on admission to the territory of the Member States — Compensation for the damage allegedly sustained by the applicant following its inclusion and re-inclusion in the list of persons and entities subject to the restrictive measures at issue — Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law conferring rights on individuals)

1. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Unlawfulness — Damage — Causal link — Burden of proof — One of the conditions not satisfied — Claim for compensation dismissed in its entirety (Art. 340, second para. TFEU) (see paras 36, 37)

2. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals — Reduced or non-existent discretion of the EU institution when adopting the measure — Need to take account of the factual context (Art. 340, second para. TFEU) (see paras 44, 45, 49-52, 59)

3. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Unlawfulness — Assessment of the legality of the institutions’ conduct — Fund-freezing measures — Claim for damages by an economic operator subject to an individual restrictive measure — Criteria — Restrictive measures pursuing a legitimate aim of the common foreign and security policy (Art. 21 TEU; Art. 215(2) TFEU) (see paras 46, 47)

4. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals — Rules of evidence — Annulment of one or more acts of the Council at the origin of the harm allegedly suffered by the applicant, including where annulment results from a judgment of the General Court delivered before the action for damages has been brought — Lack of irrefutable evidence (see para. 48)

5. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals — Rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals — Meaning — Conditions concerning the adoption of restrictive measures against Iran — Included (Art. 340, second para. TFEU; Council Decision 2010/413/CFSP, Art. 20(1)(b); Council Regulations No 961/2010, Art. 16(2)(a) and No 267/2012, Art. 23(2)(a)) (see paras 57, 58, 73)

6. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Unlawfulness — Sufficiently serious breach of EU law — Infringement by the Council of the jurisprudential obligation to establish the merits of the restrictive measures taken against natural or legal persons — None (Art. 340, second para. TFEU) (see paras 60-65, 77)

7. Non-contractual liability — Conditions — Rules of evidence — Possibility for an institution to rely on all relevant facts and matters occurring before the action for damages was brought against it — Facts and matters adduced in the context of an action for damages by the institution which adopted a freezing-funds measure are not nugatory (Art. 24(1), first para. TEU) (see paras 74-76)

Re:

Application based on Article 268 TFEU for compensation for the damage allegedly sustained by the applicant as a result of Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 54/2012 of 23 January 2012 implementing Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 on restrictive measures against Iran (OJ 2012 L 19, p. 1), Council Regulation (EU) No 267/2012 of 23 March 2012 concerning restrictive measures against Iran and repealing Regulation (EU) No 961/2010 (OJ 2012 L 88, p. 1), and Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 709/2012 of 2 August 2012 implementing Regulation No 267/2012 (OJ 2012 L 208, p. 2).

Operative part

The Court:

1. Dismisses the action;

2. Orders Bank Tejarat to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by the Council of the European Union;