Amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the General Court
Date: 2016-07-13
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: European civil service, jurisdiction, labour dispute, operation of the Institutions, rules of procedure, transfer of competence




L_2016217EN.01007301.xml










12.8.2016   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


L 217/73








            AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE GENERAL COURT
         


THE GENERAL COURT,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular the fifth paragraph of Article 254 thereof,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Article 106a(1) thereof,
Having regard to the Protocol on the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union, and in particular Article 63 thereof,
Whereas Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2016/1192 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 July 2016 on the transfer to the General Court of jurisdiction at first instance in disputes between the European Union and its servants (1), which is due to take effect on 1 September 2016, provides that the General Court is to exercise at first instance jurisdiction in the disputes between the Union and its servants referred to in Article 270 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), including disputes between all institutions and all bodies, offices or agencies, on the one hand, and their servants, on the other, in respect of which jurisdiction is conferred on the Court of Justice of the European Union,
Whereas it is in consequence appropriate to amend the Rules of Procedure of the General Court,
With the agreement of the Court of Justice,
With the approval of the Council given on 6 July 2016,
HAS ADOPTED THE FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS TO ITS RULES OF PROCEDURE:



Article 1
The Rules of Procedure of the General Court (2) are hereby amended as follows:






(1)


in Article 1(2):






(a)


the text in point (i) is replaced by the following:






‘(i)


“direct actions” means actions brought on the basis of Articles 263 TFEU, 265 TFEU, 268 TFEU, 270 TFEU and 272 TFEU;’;














(b)


the following point (j) is added:






‘(j)


“Staff Regulations” means the Regulation laying down the Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union and the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Union.’;


















(2)


Article 29 is amended as follows:






(a)


in paragraph 1(b), the words ‘cases brought pursuant to the fourth paragraph of Article 263 TFEU, the third paragraph of Article 265 TFEU and Article 268 TFEU’ are replaced by ‘cases brought pursuant to the fourth paragraph of Article 263 TFEU, the third paragraph of Article 265 TFEU, Article 268 TFEU and Article 270 TFEU’;










(b)


paragraph 2(b) is renumbered paragraph 2(c);










(c)


in paragraph 2, the following point is inserted as point (b):






‘(b)


in an action brought pursuant to Article 270 TFEU in which a plea of illegality is expressly raised against an act of general application, unless the Court of Justice or the General Court has already given a ruling on the issues raised by that plea;’;


















(3)


in Article 39(1), the first sentence is replaced by the following:
‘The officials and other servants whose task is to assist directly the President, the Judges and the Registrar shall be appointed under the conditions laid down by the Staff Regulations.’;










(4)


Article 78 is amended as follows:






(a)


paragraphs 2 to 5 are renumbered paragraphs 3 to 6;










(b)


the following is inserted as paragraph 2:

‘2.   An application submitted pursuant to Article 270 TFEU shall be accompanied, where appropriate, by the complaint within the meaning of Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations and the decision responding to the complaint, together with an indication of the dates on which the complaint was submitted and the decision notified.’;











(c)


in paragraph 5, which is renumbered paragraph 6, the reference to ‘paragraphs 1 to 4’ is replaced by a reference to ‘paragraphs 1 to 5’;














(5)


in Article 80(2), the reference to ‘Article 78(5)’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(6)’;










(6)


in Article 81(2), the reference to ‘Article 78(3) to (5)’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(4) to (6)’;










(7)


Article 86 is amended as follows:






(a)


paragraphs 3 to 6 are renumbered paragraphs 4 to 7;










(b)


the following is inserted as paragraph 3:

‘3.   In cases brought pursuant to Article 270 TFEU, the modification of the application must be made by a separate document and, by way of derogation from paragraph 2, within the time limit laid down in Article 91(3) of the Staff Regulations within which the annulment of the measure justifying the modification of the application may be sought.’;















(8)


in Article 110, the following paragraph 4 is added:

‘4.   In cases brought pursuant to Article 270 TFEU, the members of the formation of the Court and the Advocate General may in the course of the hearing invite the parties themselves to express their views on certain aspects of the case.’;











(9)


in Article 120, the words ‘or on the Civil Service Tribunal’ are deleted;










(10)


in Article 124(1), the words ‘If, before the General Court has given its decision, the main parties reach a settlement of their dispute’ are replaced by the words ‘If, before the General Court has given its decision, the main parties reach an out-of-court settlement of their dispute’;










(11)


after Article 125, a new chapter comprising four articles is added:

                                       ‘Chapter 11a
PROCEDURE IN RELATION TO AMICABLE SETTLEMENTS INITIATED BY THE GENERAL COURT IN CASES BROUGHT PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 270 TFEU

Article 125a
Procedure

1.   The General Court may, at all stages of the procedure, examine the possibilities of an amicable settlement of all or part of the dispute between the main parties.


2.   The General Court shall instruct the Judge-Rapporteur, assisted by the Registrar, to seek the amicable settlement of a dispute.


3.   The Judge-Rapporteur may propose one or more solutions capable of putting an end to the dispute, adopt appropriate measures with a view to facilitating its amicable settlement and implement the measures which he has adopted to that end. He may, in particular:






(a)


invite the main parties to supply information or particulars;










(b)


invite the main parties to produce documents;










(c)


invite to meetings the main parties' representatives, the main parties themselves or any official or servant of the institution empowered to negotiate an agreement;










(d)


on the occasion of the meetings referred to in point (c), have contact with each of the main parties separately, if they consent to that.






4.   Paragraphs 1 to 3 shall apply to proceedings for interim measures also.



Article 125b
Effect of the main parties' agreement

1.   Where the main parties come to an agreement before the Judge-Rapporteur on a solution which brings the dispute to an end, they may request that the terms of that agreement be recorded in a document signed by the Judge-Rapporteur and by the Registrar. That document shall be served on the main parties and shall constitute an official record.


2.   The case shall be removed from the register by reasoned order of the President. At the request of a main party with the agreement of the other main party, the terms of the agreement reached by the main parties shall be recorded in the order removing the case from the register.


3.   The President shall give a decision as to costs in accordance with the agreement or, failing that, at his discretion. Where appropriate, he shall give a decision as to the costs of an intervener in accordance with Article 138.



Article 125c
Specific register and file

1.   Material produced in the context of the amicable settlement procedure as provided for in Article 125a:






—


shall be entered in a specific register which shall not be subject to the rules laid down in Articles 36 and 37,










—


shall be placed in a file separate from the case file.






2.   Material produced in the context of the amicable settlement procedure as provided for in Article 125a shall be brought to the attention of the main parties, with the exception of material which either of them has communicated to the Judge-Rapporteur in the separate meetings provided for in Article 125a(3)(d).


3.   The main parties may have access to the material in the file separate from the case file as referred to in paragraph 1, with the exception of material which either of the main parties has communicated to the Judge-Rapporteur in the separate meetings provided for in Article 125a(3)(d).


4.   An intervener may not have access to material in the file separate from the case file as referred to in paragraph 1.


5.   The parties may examine the specific register referred to in paragraph 1 at the Registry.



Article 125d
Amicable settlement and judicial proceedings
No opinion expressed, suggestion made, proposal put forward, concession made or document drawn up for the purposes of the amicable settlement may be relied upon as evidence by the General Court or the main parties in the judicial proceedings.’;











(12)


Article 127 is amended as follows:






(a)


the heading ‘Referral of a case to the Court of Justice or to the Civil Service Tribunal’ is replaced by ‘Referral of a case to the Court of Justice’;










(b)


the words ‘and in Article 8(2) of Annex I to the Statute’ are deleted;














(13)


in Article 130(7), the second sentence, ‘It shall refer the case to the Court of Justice or to the Civil Service Tribunal if the case falls within their jurisdiction.’ is replaced by ‘It shall refer the case to the Court of Justice if the case falls within the latter's jurisdiction.’;










(14)


in Article 135(1), the word ‘Exceptionally,’ is deleted;










(15)


in Article 143(4), the reference to ‘Article 78(3) to (5)’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(4) to (6)’;










(16)


in Article 147(5):






(a)


the reference to ‘Article 78(3).’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(4).’;










(b)


the reference to ‘Article 78(5)’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(6)’;














(17)


Article 156 is amended as follows:






(a)


paragraphs 3 and 4 are renumbered paragraphs 4 and 5;










(b)


the following is inserted as paragraph 3:

‘3.   In cases brought pursuant to Article 270 TFEU, an application of a kind referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 may be presented as soon as the complaint under Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations has been submitted, on the conditions laid down in Article 91(4) of those Regulations.’;















(18)


in Article 173(5), the reference to ‘Article 78(3) to (5)’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(4) to (6)’;










(19)


in Article 175(4), the reference to ‘Article 78(3) to (5)’ is replaced by a reference to ‘Article 78(4) to (6)’;










(20)


Article 193 is amended as follows:






(a)


in paragraph 1, the words ‘or at the Registry of the Civil Service Tribunal’ are deleted;










(b)


paragraph 2 is deleted;










(c)


the number preceding the first paragraph is deleted;














(21)


in Article 196(2), the words ‘Civil Service Tribunal’ are replaced by ‘General Court ruling as a court of first instance’, and the words ‘ruling as a court of appeal’ are added after the words ‘General Court’;










(22)


in Article 213(3), the words ‘and to the Civil Service Tribunal’ are deleted.






Article 2
These amendments to the Rules of Procedure, authentic in the languages referred to in Article 44 of those Rules, shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and shall enter into force on 1 September 2016.




Done at Luxembourg, 13 July 2016.


Registrar

E. COULON
            

President

M. JAEGER
            





(1)  
            OJ L 200, 26.7.2016, p. 137.

(2)  Rules of Procedure of the General Court (OJ L 105, 23.4.2015, p. 1).