Case T-257/04: Action brought on 28 June 2004 by the Republic of Poland against the Commission of the European Communities
Date: 2004-10-09
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: European Commission, Poland, action for annulment (EU), agricultural trade, customs union, free movement of goods, import tax, transitional period (EU)

C 251/20

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

9.10.2004

Pleas in law and main arguments:

the

By three letters dated 27 October 2003 the second applicant
presented to the Commission three requests for access to docu-
ments connected to the question of whether tooth-bleaching
products should be classified as cosmetic products or as
medical devices. More particularly,
second applicant
requested access to documents relating to a complaint made on
behalf of the first applicant to the Commission contesting the
classification of such products by the United Kingdom Authori-
ties, to documents relating to the preparation of the answer by
Commissioner Borino to a written question to the Commission
on such products and finally to all documents of the Commis-
the classification of such
sion relating to the question of
products. At the same time the second applicant, who is a soli-
citor, declared in his application that he was acting on behalf
of the first applicant.

Confirmatory applications were filed on 16 December 2003.
On 17 December 2003 the Commission replied to the initial
applications and the applicants filed a further confirmatory
application on 7 January 2004 which purported to withdraw
the three previous confirmatory applications of 16 December.
The Commission replied to the application of 7 January 2004
by a letter dated 5 April 2004. Enclosed with this letter were a
number of documents.

the administrative procedure
The applicants contend that
revealed that, apart from the documents disclosed to the appli-
cants by the letter of 5 April 2004, a number of documents on
the matters in question certainly exist and other documents
may also be presumed to exist. According to the applicants all
these documents are within the scope of the initial application
and within the possession of the Commission, but have not
been disclosed to the applicants. On this basis the applicants
consider the letter of 5 April 2004 as a decision to refuse
access to all these documents, and request its annulment. In
support of their application they invoke a violation of Article 8
of Regulation
145,
31/05/2001 p. 43-48 and of this regulation in general. They
further submit that the Commission failed to give reasons for
not granting access to the documents that certainly exist, nor
has it invoked any exceptions to the right of access in order to
justify its refusal.

1049/2001 (1) Official

Journal

L

(1) Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of
the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European
Parliament, Council and Commission documents.

European Communities on 28 June 2004 by the Republic of
Poland, represented by Jarosław Pietras, acting as Agent.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

— declare invalid Articles 3 and 4(3) and (5), eighth indent, of
Commission Regulation (EC) No 1972/2003 of 10
November 2003 on transitional measures to be adopted in
respect of trade in agricultural products on account of the
accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia,
Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia
(OJ 2003 L 293, p. 3), as amended by Commission Regu-
lation (EC) No 230/2004 of 10 February 2004 (OJ 2004 L
39, p. 13) and Commission Regulation (EC) No 735/2004
of 20 April 2004 (OJ 2004 L 114, p. 13);

— order the Commission of the European Communities to

pay the costs of the proceedings.

Pleas in law and main arguments

With regard to Article 3 of Regulation No 1972/2003 the
applicant raises the following heads of complaint:

— infringement of

the principle of

the free movement of
goods through the introduction of customs duties in the
amount of a customs rate applicable erga omnes and
exceeding the level of customs rates in force during the
period prior to Poland's accession to the European Union;

— lack of competence on the Commission's part and breach
of Articles 22 and 41, first paragraph, and Part 5 of Annex
IV to the Act concerning the conditions of accession of the
Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of
Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania,
the
the Republic of Hungary,
Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak
Republic and the adjustments to the Treaties on which the
European Union is founded (1) through the adoption of
measures altering the conditions defined in that Act for the
adoption by the Republic of Poland of the rules governing
the customs union;

the Republic of Malta,

— infringement of

the principle of non-discrimination on
the adoption of
grounds of nationality by reason of
measures providing for treatment of persons from Poland
that differs from that of persons from the Community of
15 States who are in a comparable position;

Action brought on 28 June 2004 by the Republic of
Poland against the Commission of the European Commu-
nities

— breach of a fundamental procedural requirement by virtue

of the inadequate reasoning of the measures adopted;

(Case T-257/04)

(2004/C 251/38)

(Language of the case: Polish)

An action against the Commission of the European Commu-
nities was brought before the Court of First Instance of the

— infringement of the principle of the protection of legitimate
expectations by reason of the introduction of a method, at
variance with the conditions laid down in the abovemen-
tioned Act of Accession, for dealing with products which
were in temporary storage on 1 May 2004, were covered
by customs procedures or were in transit within the
enlarged Community, and in particular by reason of the
introduction of customs duties exceeding the level of
customs rates in force during the period prior to Poland's
accession to the European Union.

9.10.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 251/21

With regard to Article 4(3) of Regulation No 1972/2003 the
applicant argues that the Commission lacked competence and
that there has been a breach of the first paragraph of Article
41 of the abovementioned Act of Accession and infringement
of the principles of proportionality and non-discrimination on
grounds of nationality, in so far as the level of duty laid down
in the contested provision exceeds the differential between the
Community customs rate and the Polish rate as on 30 April
2004.

With regard to the eighth indent of Article 4(5) of Regulation
No 1972/2003 the applicant argues that
the Commission
lacked competence and that there has been a breach of the first
paragraph of Article 41 of the abovementioned Act of Acces-
sion and infringement of the principle of proportionality in so
far as the contested provision covers products for which the
Polish customs rate for imports on 30 April 2004 was greater
than or equal to the Community rate and also products in
respect of which there was, on 1 May 2004, no evidence of
surplus stocks at national level.

With regard to all of the contested provisions of Regulation No
1972/2003, the applicant argues that the Commission abused
its powers by adopting measures the real objective of which
was not
the
Common Agricultural Policy but rather to protect the market
of the Community of 15 States against competition from Polish
agricultural producers.

to facilitate Poland in adopting the rules of

(1) OJ 2003 L 236, p. 33.

Pleas in law and main arguments

With regard to Article 5 of Regulation No 60/2004 the appli-
cant raises the following heads of complaint:

— infringement of

the principle of

the free movement of
goods through the introduction of customs duties in the
amount of a customs rate applicable erga omnes and
exceeding the level of customs rates in force during the
period prior to Poland's accession to the European Union;

— lack of competence on the Commission's part and breach
of Articles 22 and 41, first paragraph, and Part 5 of Annex
IV to the Act concerning the conditions of accession of the
Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of
Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania,
the Republic of Hungary,
the
Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak
Republic and the adjustments to the Treaties on which the
European Union is founded (1) through the adoption of
measures altering the conditions defined in that Act for the
adoption by the Republic of Poland of the rules governing
the customs union and through the inclusion by the
contested provision of products that are not covered by the
Common Agricultural Policy;

the Republic of Malta,

— infringement of

the principle of non-discrimination on
grounds of nationality by reason of
the adoption of
measures providing for treatment of persons from Poland
that differs from that of persons from the Community of
15 States who are in a comparable position;

Action brought on 28 June 2004 by the Republic of
Poland against the Commission of the European Commu-
nities

— breach of a fundamental procedural requirement by virtue

of the inadequate reasoning of the measures adopted;

(Case T-258/04)

(2004/C 251/39)

(Language of the case: Polish)

An action against the Commission of the European Commu-
nities was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 28 June 2004 by the Republic of
Poland, represented by Jarosław Pietras, acting as Agent.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

— declare invalid Articles 5, 6(1), (2) and (3), 7(1) and 8(2)(a)
of Commission Regulation (EC) No 60/2004 of 14 January
2004 laying down transitional measures in the sugar sector
by reason of the accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia,
Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia
and Slovakia (OJ 2004 L 9, p. 8);

— order the Commission of the European Communities to

pay the costs of the proceedings.

— infringement of the principle of the protection of legitimate
expectations by reason of the introduction of a method, at
variance with the conditions laid down in the abovemen-
tioned Act of Accession, of dealing with products which
were in temporary storage on 1 May 2004, were covered
by customs procedures or were in transit within the
enlarged Community, and in particular by reason of the
introduction of customs duties exceeding the level of
customs rates in force during the period prior to Poland's
accession to the European Union.

With regard to Article 6(1) and (2) of Regulation No 60/2004,
the applicant argues that the Commission lacked competence
and that there has been a breach of Article 22, the first para-
graph of Article 41 and Part 4 of Annex IV to the abovemen-
tioned Act of Accession,
in conjunction with Council Regu-
lation (EC) No 1260/2001 of 19 June 2001 on the common
organisation of the markets in the sugar sector (2) — to the
extent to which the contested provisions provide for account
to be taken by the Commission of processed products
containing sugar (sugar equivalent) when determining the exis-
tence of surplus quantities of sugar and isoglucose and impose
a prohibition on the elimination of surplus quantities of sugar
and isoglucose by way of exportation of processed products
containing sugar (sugar equivalent).