CELEX: C1999/071/64
Language: en
Date: 1999-03-13 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 4 January 1999 by T. Port GmbH & Co. KG against the Commission of the European Communities (Case T-1/99)

C 71/34              EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                                    13.3.1999
Action brought on 4 January 1999 by T. Port GmbH &               since the beginning of this century, states that it has been
Co. KG against the Commission of the European                    recognised since 1 July 1993 as a Category A operator. It
                       Communities                               also states that, since 1995, it has had import contacts
                       (Case T-1/99)                             with banana producers in Costa Rica.
                      (1999/C 71/64)
                                                                 In its claim, it seeks compensation for the damage it
              (Language of the case: German)                     claims to have suffered through having to pay the cost of
                                                                 the export licences as a condition for importing bananas
                                                                 from Costa Rica. The judgment of the Court of Justice
An action against the Commission of the European                 cited above clearly shows, in its submission, that the
Communities was brought before the Court of First                annulled article infringed the general prohibition of
Instance of the European Communities on 4 January 1999           discrimination and Article 40(3) of the EC Treaty. The
by T. Port GmbH & Co. KG, whose registered office is in          infringement of the principle of equality and the
Hamburg, represented by Gert Meier, Rechtsanwalt,                discrimination against Category A operators was carried
Jakordenstraûe 10, Köln.                                         out arbitrarily and for ulterior motives (financial aid).
                                                                 Those legal infringements caused damage to the applicant
The applicant claims that the Court should:                      arising in the following ways: It was obliged to fulfil
                                                                 acceptance obligations towards its producer in Costa Rica.
                                                                 In order to obtain import licences for those bananas and
1. require the Commission to pay the applicant damages           market them in the Community, it had to prove to the
    of DM 828 337.10 in respect of its loss suffered             competent German authority, when applying for the
    through having to buy export licences in Costa Rica in       import licences, that it held the corresponding export
    order to be able to use its rights as a Category A           licences. In order to acquire the licences, the applicant
    operator to import bananas into the Community and            incurred the expenditure referred to in its claims.
    market third-country bananas from Costa Rica in
    Germany;
                                                                 (1) Commission Regulation (EC) No 478/95 of 1 March 1995 on
                                                                     additional rules for the application of Council Regulation
2. require the Commission to pay the applicant damages               (EEC) No 404/93 as regards the tariff quota arrangements for
    of DM 126 356.80 in respect of its loss suffered                 imports of bananas into the Community and amending
    through having to use external credits in order to               Regulation (EEC) No 1442/93 (OJ L 49, 4.3.1995, p. 13).
    finance the expenses incurred in respect of the export       (2) Council Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 of 13 February 1993 on
    licences;                                                        the common organisation of the market in bananas (OJ L 47,
                                                                     25.2.1993, p. 1).
                                                                 (3) Delivered on 10 March 1998.
3. order interest of 4 % on the applicant's claims for
    damages, as from the commencement of proceedings;
4. order the Commission to pay the costs.
Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:              Action brought on 4 January 1999 by T. Port GmbH &
                                                                      Co. KG against the Council of the European Union
In 1994, in the context of the GATT, the Community                                        (Case T-2/99)
concluded the so-called Framework Agreement on
bananas with Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and                                         (1999/C 71/65)
Venezuela.
                                                                                (Language of the case: German)
By Regulation (EC) No 478/95 (1), made pursuant to
Article 20 of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 (2), the
necessary measures for implementing the Framework
Agreement were to be finally adopted.                            An action against the Council of the European Union was
                                                                 brought before the Court of First Instance of the European
                                                                 Communities on 4 January 1999 by T. Port GmbH & Co.
By the judgment of the Court of Justice in Joined Cases          KG, whose registered office is in Hamburg, represented by
C-364/95 and C-365/95 T. Port GmbH & Co. v                       Gert Meier, Rechtsanwalt, Jakordenstraûe 10, Köln.
Hauptzollamt Hamburg-Jonas [1998] ECR I-1023 (3),
Regulation (EC) No 478/95 was declared invalid to the
extent to which Article 3(2) thereof imposed only on             The applicant claims that the Court should:
Category A and C operators the obligation to obtain
export licences for bananas from Colombia, Costa Rica or
Nicaragua.
                                                                 1. order the Council to compensate the applicant for the
                                                                      loss which it suffered through having to buy or obtain
The applicant, which has been importing bananas from                  the use of import rights for bananas from Category A,
Latin America into Germany and marketing them there                   B or C operators in order to market third-country