Case T-23/03: Action brought on 29 January 2003 by C.A.S. Succhi di Frutta against the Commission of the European Communities
Date: 2003-04-05
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: European Commission, Türkiye, action for annulment (EU), fruit juice, import, movement certificate, originating product

5.4.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 83/23

Action brought on 29 January 2003 by C.A.S. Succhi di
Frutta against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties

(Case T-23/03)

(2003/C 83/51)

(Language of the case: German)

An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 29 January 2003 by C.A.S. Succhi
di Frutta, Verona, Italy, represented by D. Ehle, lawyer.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

— annul the Commission’s decision of 18 October 2002
(REC 10/01), in so far as the Commission refused to remit
or
to
ITL 3 296 190 371 collected by way of post-clearance
recovery in respect of 32 imports covered by 32 specified
A.TR.1 certificates;

amounting

import

duties

repay

the

— order the Commission to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

Regulation (EEC) No 4115/86 (1) abolished, with certain
exceptions, the customs duties imposed on the goods originat-
ing in Turkey listed in Annex II to the EEC Treaty.

Between 5 April 1995 and 20 November 1997, the applicant,
an Italian company which, inter alia, processes imported fruit
juice concentrates, put on the market for free circulation apple
and pear juice concentrates declared to originate in Turkey.
According to the applicant, the shipments were accompanied
by proper documents,
including the A.TR.1 movement of
goods certificates. In 1998, the customs authorities in Ravenna
presented the applicant with a list of A.TR.1 certificates. On
the basis of examinations of the authenticity and regularity of
the certificates carried out at the offices of the Turkish customs
authority, it was alleged that the applicant had imported apple
juice concentrates with falsified A.TR.1 certificates. At the
same time, the applicant was required to pay import duties by
way of post-clearance recovery.

the

same

The applicant lodged an objection to the customs assessment
notices issued by the competent customs authority in Ravenna.
At
remission under
Article 220(2)(b) and Article 239 of the Customs Code. The
Italian tax authorities submitted the decision on the remission
of
the import duties collected by way of post-clearance
recovery to the Commission.

applied for

time,

it

In the contested decision, the Commission, inter alia, takes the
view that 32 A.TR.1 certificates were falsified. The Commission
of
refused
ITL 3 296 190 371.

applicant’s

remission

request

the

for

In support of its claim for annulment of the part of the
Commission’s decision refusing remission, the applicant sub-
mits that the Commission infringed its right of access to the
file, inasmuch as, in the course of providing access to the file,
the Commission failed to disclose and produce to the applicant
all the documents relevant to the case.

The applicant further submits that the Commission failed to
comply with its remission or repayment obligation under
Article 239 of the Customs Code in respect of the 32 allegedly
falsified A.TR.1 certificates, since those 32 certificates too were
issued and registered and handed over to the exporter when
clearing the goods for export with the knowledge and cooper-
ation of the competent Turkish customs authority, which was
aware of the possibility that the goods might not be of Turkish
origin.

Moreover, the Commission infringed Article 220(2)(b) of the
Customs Code since the Turkish customs authorities knew or
could reasonably have known that the deliveries for which the
32 A.TR 1 certificates were issued, were not of Turkish origin,
whereas, when importing the products, the applicant acted in
good faith and was unaware of the misconduct of the Turkish
customs authority.

(1) Council Regulation (EEC) No 4115/86 of 22 December 1986 on
imports into the Community of agricultural products originating
in Turkey (OJ 1986 L 380, p. 16).

Action brought on 28 January 2003 by Marco de Stefano
against the Commission of the European Communities

(Case T-25/03)

(2003/C 83/52)

(Language of the case: French)

An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 28 January 2003 by Marco de
Stefano, residing in Brussels, represented by Georges Vander-
sanden and Guy Verbrugge, lawyers.