CELEX: C1996/064/40
Language: en
Date: 1996-03-02 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 22 December 1995 by Francesco Mongelli against the Commission of the European Communities (Case T-238/95)

2 . 3 . 96           I EN |               Official Journal of the European Communities                                 No C 64/21
Action brought on 22 December 1995 by Francesco                         reduction in the Italian weighting corresponds to an
Mongelli against the Commission of the European                         actual increase in the cost of living in Italy,
                           Communities
                        ( Case T-238/95 )
                           ( 96/C 64/40 )                            — discriminatory treatment: the applicant criticizes the
                                                                        consequences of such a modus procedendo that is,
                                                                        treating pensioners differently according to whether
                 (Language of the case: Italian)                        they reside in a State with a strong currency or a State
                                                                        with a weak currency. It may readily be observed that
                                                                        pensioners residing in Italy are objectively
                                                                        disadvantaged where they have to bear charges and
An action against the Commission of the European                        expenses, particularly if they are permanent or
Communities was brought before the Court of First                       continuous, in a State whose currency is strong or must
Instance of the European Communities on 22 December                     or wish to purchase goods from such a State . On the
1995 by Francesco Mongelli , a former official of the                   other hand, pensioners residing in States whose currency
Commission of the European Communities , residing in                    is strong are at an advantage when making purchases or
Cecina ( Leghorn ), represented by Giuseppe Marchesini,                 payments in a currency of a lower value . Moreover, it
advocate with the right of audience before the Corte di                 may readily be ascertained that Member States whose
Cassazione of the Italian Republic, with an address for                 currency is certainly stronger than that of Italy and
service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Ernest Arendt,                 whose rate of inflation is lower ( Germany, France,
8— 10 Rue Mathias Hardt .
                                                                        United Kingdom, among others ) paradoxically all have a
                                                                        weighting in excess of 100 which, in the case of
                                                                        Germany, is in fact greater than the previous year,
The applicant claims that the Court should:
— annul the applicant's pension statements as from                   — breach of the legitimate expectation that nominal
     January 1995 on the grounds set forth in the                       income would be preserved: the applicant points out that
     application,                                                       the principle that the nominal income is to be preserved
                                                                        is not a mere affirmation but is given concrete expression
                                                                        in the practice observed by the institutions since 1970 .
— order the Commission to pay the amounts due in their                  That practice, moreover, has been officially sanctioned
     entirety, together with interest at 8 % calculated from            in statements of the Council and the Commission,
     the dates on which they fell due,
— order the defendant to pay the costs of the                        — infringement of the second paragraph of Article 63 and
     proceedings .                                                      Article 45 of Annex VIII to the Staff Regulations : the
                                                                        applicant maintains that the irregularity is even more
                                                                        serious inasmuch as they have opted to pay the pension
                                                                        in the currency in which the institution has its seat. The
Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:                     conversion procedure adopted by the administration is
                                                                        in two stages : the payment in Belgian francs to those who
The applicant, a former Commission official, receives an old            have so chosen was carried out by applying to the
age pension . He is resident in Italy and is subject to the             pension in Italian lire the exchange rate in force on 1 July
weighting provided for in respect of Italy. The applicant               of the year in question . That means that the
observed from the pension statement for January 1995 that               administration first calculates the pension in lire
there had been a significant reduction in his emoluments by             resulting from a prior conversion from Belgian francs to
comparison with the amount received in the preceding                    Italian lire ( since remuneration is expressed in Belgian
months. The origin of that reduction lay in Council                     francs, in accordance with Article 63 of the Staff
Regulation 3161 /94 of 19 December 1994 which amended                   Regulations ). Then, to the amount in lire resulting
the weighting previously in force .                                     therefrom,, it applies the exchange rate between lire and
                                                                        Belgian francs in force on 1 July, and carries out a second
                                                                        conversion .       This    constitutes    two      manifest
The applicant seeks the annulment of the pension statement,             infringements . The first concerns the second paragraph
contesting incidentally the Council 's basic provisions . The           of Article 63 of the Staff Regulations . That Article, after
application is based on the following grounds :                         explaining that emoluments are always to be expressed
                                                                        first of all in Belgian francs, provides that the
                                                                        remuneration paid in a currency other than Belgian
— infringement of Article 64 of the Staff Regulations : the             francs is to be calculated on the basis of exchange rates
     applicant claims that a weighting based primarily on the           used for the implementation of the general budget of the
     rate of exchange between national currencies and not on            European Communities . This means that the pensions of
     the price developments in the Member State, as provided            those who chose the Belgian franc as the currency for
     for in Article 64 of the Staff Regulations, is unlawful .          payment must be settled and paid in Belgian francs
     The anomaly is even greater if it is borne in mind that a          without there being a need for any conversion
 ---pagebreak--- No C 64/22           EN                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                    2 . 3 . 96
    whatsoever, precisely because they are not paid in any         Italian Republic, with an address for service in Luxembourg
    other currency. The second concerns the fourth                 at the Chambers of Ernest Arendt, 8—10 Rue Mathias
    subparagraph of Article 82, which refers to the pensions       Hardt .
    which are to be paid in a currency other than Belgian
    francs and provides for a conversion operation only in
    this context .
                                                                   The applicant claims that the Court should :
                                                                   — annul the applicant's pension statements as from
                                                                       January 1995 on the grounds set forth in the
                                                                       application,
Action brought on 22 December 1995 by Alberto                      — order the Commission to pay the amounts due in their
Castagnoli against the Commission of the European                      entirety, together with interest at 8 % calculated from
                         Communities                                   the dates on which they fell due,
                      ( Case T-239/95 )
                         ( 96/C 64/41 )                            — order the defendant to pay the costs of the
                                                                       proceedings.
               (Language of the case: Italian)
                                                                   The pleas in law and main arguments are analogous to those
An action against the Commission of the European                   in Case T-238/95 Francesco Mongelli v. Commission.
Communities was brought before the Court of First
Instance of the European Communities on 22 December
1995 by Alberto Castagnoli, a former official of the
Commission of the European Communities, residing in
Segrate ( Milan ), represented by Giuseppe Marchesini,
advocate with the right of audience before the Corte di
Cassazione of the Italian Republic, with an address for            Action brought on 22 December 1995 by Vittorio Sadini
service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Ernest Arendt,              against the Commission of the European Communities
8— 10 Rue Mathias Hardt .                                                                ( Case T-241/95 )
                                                                                            ( 96/C 64/43 )
The applicant claims that the Court should:
— annul the applicant's pension statements as from                                 (Language of the case: Italian)
    January 1995 on the grounds set forth in the
    application,                                                   An action against the Commission of the European
— order the Commission to pay the amounts due in their             Communities was brought before the Court of First
                                                                   Instance of the European Communities on 22 December
    entirety, together with interest at 8 % calculated from
    the dates on which they fell due,                              1995 by Vittorio Sadini, a former official of the Commission
                                                                   of the European Communities , residing in Segrate ( Milan ),
— order the defendant to pay the costs of the                      represented by Giuseppe Marchesini, advocate with the
    proceedings .                                                  right of audience before the Corte di Cassazione of the
                                                                   Italian Republic, with an address for service in Luxembourg
                                                                   at the Chambers of Ernest Arendt, 8—10 Rue Mathias
The pleas in law and main arguments are analogous to those         Hardt .
in Case T-238/95 Francesco Mongelli v. Commission .
                                                                   The applicant claims that the Court should:
                                                                   — annul the applicant's pension statements as from
                                                                       January 1995 on the grounds set forth in the
Action brought on 22 December 1995 by Eduardo Capuano                  application,
  against the Commission of the European Communities
                      ( Case T-240/95 )                            — order the Commission to pay the amounts due in their
                         ( 96/C 64/42 )                                entirety, together with interest at 8 % calculated from
                                                                       the dates on which they fell due,
                (Language of the case: Italian)
                                                                   — order the defendant to pay the costs of the
An action against the Commission of the European                        proceedings .
Communities was brought before the Court of First
Instance of the European Communities on 22 December                The pleas in law and main arguments are analogous to those
1995 by Eduardo Capuano, a former official of the                  in Case T-238/95 Francesco Mongelli v. Commission.
Commission of the European Communities, residing in
Rome, represented by Giuseppe Marchesini, advocate with
the right of audience before the Corte di Cassazione of the