Order of the President of the Court of First Instance of 30 October 2003 In Joined Cases T-125/03 R: Akzo Nobel Chemicals Ltd and Akcros Chemicals Ltd v Commission of the European Communities (Interim measures — Competition — Commission's powers of investigation — Protection of confidentiality — Communications between lawyers and clients — Limits)
Date: 2004-02-07
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: European Commission, action for annulment (EU), consultation of information, document, fact-finding mission, judicial investigation, offence, professional secret

C 35/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

7.2.2004

ORDER OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE COURT OF
FIRST INSTANCE

of 30 October 2003

In Joined Cases T-125/03 R: Akzo Nobel Chemicals Ltd
and Akcros Chemicals Ltd v Commission of the European
Communities

(Interim measures — Competition — Commission’s powers
of investigation — Protection of confidentiality — Com-
munications between lawyers and clients — Limits)

(2004/C 35/15)

(Language of the case: English)

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

The application for interim measures in Case T-125/03 R is
dismissed.

The Commission’s statement that it will not allow third parties
to have access to the Set B documents pending judgment in the
main proceedings in Case T-253/03 is noted.

the operation of Article 2 of

In Case T-253/03 R,
the
Commission’s decision of 8 May 2003 concerning a claim of
legal privilege (Case COMP/E-1/38.589) is suspended pending
the judgment of the Court in the main proceedings.

The sealed envelope containing the Set A documents will be
kept by the Registry of the Court of First Instance pending the
decision of the Court in the main action.

The remainder of the application for interim measures in Case
T-253/03 R is dismissed.

The costs in Cases T-125/03 R and T-253/03 R are reserved.

In Joined Cases T-125/03 R and T-253/03 R, Akzo Nobel
Chemicals Ltd, established in London (United Kingdom),
Akcros Chemicals Ltd, established in Surrey (United Kingdom),
represented by C. Swaak and M. Mollica, lawyers, v Com-
mission of the European Communities (Agents: R. Waiwright
and C. Ingen-Housz): Application for, first, suspension of the
operation of the Commission’s decision of 10 February 2003
amending the decision of 30 January 2003 ordering Akzo
Nobel Chemicals Ltd, Akcros Chemicals Ltd and Akcros
Chemicals and their subsidiaries to submit to an investigation
under Article 14(3) of Council Regulation No 17 of 6 February
1962, First Regulation implementing Articles [81] and [82] of
the Treaty (OJ, English Special Edition 1959-1962, p. 87), and
also other interim measures to protect the applicants’ interests
(Case T-125/03 R), and, second, suspension of the operation
of the Commission’s decision of 8 May 2003 rejecting a claim
of legal privilege in respect of five documents copied during
an investigation and also other interim measures to protect
the applicants’ interests (Case T-253/03 R), the President of
the Court of First Instance has made an order on 30 October
2003, the operative part of which is as follows:

1.

2.

Cases T-125/03 R and T-253/03 R are joined for the
purposes of this order.

The Council of the Bars and Law Societies of the European
Union, the Algemene Raad van de Nederlandse Orde van
Advocaten and the European Company Lawyers Association
are granted leave to intervene in Cases T-125/03 R and
T-253/03 R.

ORDER OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE COURT OF
FIRST INSTANCE

of 7 November 2003

in Case T-198/03 R Bank of Austria Creditanstalt AG v
Commission of the European Communities

(Interim proceedings — Admissibility — Competition —
Publication of a decision imposing a fine — No Urgency —
Lack)

(2004/C 35/16)

(Language of the case: German)

In Case T-198/03 R Bank Austria Creditanstalt AG, established
in Vienna (Austria), represented by C. Zschocke and J. Beninca,
lawyers, with an address for service in Luxembourg, against
the Commission of the European Communities (Agent: S. Rat-
ing) — application for suspension of the operation of the
decision of the Commission’s Hearing Officer of 5 May 2003
to publish the non-confidential version of the Commission
decision of 11 June 2002 in Case COMP/36.571/D-1 —
Austrian Banks (‘Club Lombard’), the President of the Court of
First Instance made an order on 7 November 2003, the
operative part of which is as follows:

3. At the stage of the application for interim measures, the requests
for confidential treatment submitted by the applicants in respect
of certain matters in the procedural documents in Cases T-125/
03 R and T-253/03 R and referred to as such in the letter of
16 September 2003 from the Registry to the applicants are
granted.

1)

2)

The application for interim relief is rejected.

The costs are reserved.