Case T-1047/23: Action brought on 23 October 2023 — AF v Council
Date: 2023-10-23
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: European official, damages, disciplinary proceedings, equal treatment, indemnification, legal expenses, principle of proportionality, professional career, rights of the defence, staff regulations (EU)








C_202400423EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
Series C













C/2024/423


3.1.2024





Action brought on 23 October 2023 — AF v Council
(Case T-1047/23)
(C/2024/423)
Language of the case: English

Parties


Applicant: AF (represented by: A. Guillerme, lawyer)

Defendant: Council of the European Union

Form of order sought

The applicant claims that the Court should:






—


annul the decisions of the Appointing authority of the General Secretariat of the Council of 16 December 2022 to impose a warning pursuant to Article 3(1)(b) of Annex IX to the EU Staff Regulations to the applicant after completion of the disciplinary proceedings not involving the Disciplinary Board;










—


annul the decision of the General Secretariat of the Council of 6 February 2023 refusing to reimburse the legal costs incurred by the applicant, in accordance with Article 21 of Annex IX to the Staff Regulations and order the payment of EUR 2 413,95;










—


order the defendant to pay a compensation for the material and moral harm suffered by the applicant due to the contested decisions;










—


order the defendant to pay the costs.





Pleas in law and main arguments

In support of the action, the applicant relies on the following pleas in law.






1.


First plea in law, alleging, with regard to the illegality of the decision of 16 December 2022 imposing a warning pursuant to article 3(1)(b), Annex IX to the Staff Regulations, three procedural irregularities affecting the conduct of the administrative inquiry, which have impacted the legality of the final contested decision:






—


the Legal Advisers to the Administration Unit did not have competence to conduct an administrative inquiry in the area of personal data protection on the basis of Annex IX to the Staff Regulations. This amounts to a breach of Article 7(3) of Decision 6/2021 of the Secretary-General of the Council adopting general implementing provisions on administrative investigations and disciplinary proceedings (‘Decision 6/2021’);










—


the administrative inquiry has not been conducted impartially, in breach of Article 41(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and Article 13 of Decision 6/2021;










—


the administrative inquiry has not been conducted in accordance with the principle of sound administration, in breach of the rights of the defence and the duty to examine the facts of the case taking due account of the inculpatory and exculpatory elements.




On the merits, the applicant claims that the contested decision of 16 December 2022 imposing a warning is unlawful, as it is:






—


based on non-established facts;










—


vitiated by a manifest error of assessment;










—


in breach of the principle of proportionality; and










—


in breach of the principle of non-discrimination.














2.


Second plea in law, alleging, with regard to the illegality of the decision of 6 February 2023 refusing the reimbursement of the lawyers’ costs incurred for the applicant’s defence during the disciplinary proceedings not involving the Disciplinary Board, that:






—


that decision infringes Article 21 of Annex IX to the Staff Regulations under which the expenses shall be borne by the administration when disciplinary proceedings do not result in a disciplinary penalty, as it is the case in the present matter;










—


the principles of sound administration and non-discrimination have been violated with regard to the interpretation given to the Staff Regulations consisting in making a distinction between the right to reimbursement of lawyers’ costs depending on whether a Disciplinary Board is involved and, to the violation of the right of defence for any staff member to be assisted by a lawyer when facing disciplinary proceedings.














3.


Third plea in law, alleging, with regards to the claim for a financial compensation for the material and moral harm suffered, that, this corresponds respectively to the negative impact on the applicant’s career resulting in the certain loss of the opportunity to be promoted in 2023 and the significantly reduced opportunity to be promoted over the next years, and to the damage caused to her dignity and professional reputation due to the contested illegal decision of 16 December 2022, which severely affected her health.






ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/423/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)