CELEX: C2003/124/39
Language: en
Date: 2003-05-24 00:00:00
Title: Case T-28/03: Action brought by Alsen AG against the Commission of the European Communities on 31 January 2003

C 124/22              EN                         Official Journal of the European Union                                          24.5.2003
Action brought by Alsen AG against the Commission of                     event should guarantee costs be imposed upon the applicant
      the European Communities on 31 January 2003                        that were necessary for it to pay in pursuing its rights.
                         (Case T-28/03)                                  (1 ) Decision 94/815/EC of 30 November 1994 in Cases IV/33.126
                                                                              and 33.122 (Cement).
                                                                         (2 ) Judgment of 15 March 2000 in Joined Cases T-25/95 and Others
                        (2003/C 124/39)                                       [2000] ECR II-491.
                  (Language of the case: German)
An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the               Action brought on 13 February 2003 by Knauf Westdeut-
European Communities on 31 January 2003 by Alsen AG,                     sche Gipswerke KG against the Commission of the
Hamburg (Germany), represented by K. Moosecker and                                            European Communities
F. Weimer, lawyers.
                                                                                                    (Case T-52/03)
The applicant claims that the Court should:
                                                                                                   (2003/C 124/40)
—     order the Commission to pay to the applicant the sum of
      EUR 139 002,21 together with interest at an overall rate                              (Language of the case: German)
      of 5,75 % for the period from 15 April 2000 until
      payment has been made in full;
—     order the Commission to pay the costs.                             An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
                                                                         ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
                                                                         European Communities on 13 February 2003 by Knauf
                                                                         Westdeutsche Gipswerke KG, Iphofen (Germany), represented
                                                                         by M. Klusmann and F. Wiemer, lawyers.
Pleas in law and main arguments
                                                                         The applicant claims that the Court should:
The applicant seeks an order that the Commission pay the
costs of a guarantee. According to the applicant, those costs            —      annul Commission Decision C(2002)4570 final of
arose because the Commission imposed a fine on the applicant,                   27 November 2002 in so far as it concerns the applicant;
by decision (1), for an alleged infringement of Article 81 EC.
By judgment of 15 March 2000 ( 2) that decision was annulled             —      in the alternative, reduce appropriately the fine imposed
by the Court of First Instance in so far as it concerned the                    on the applicant in the contested decision;
applicant. During the procedure before the Court the applicant
had to lodge securities in the form of two bank guarantees for           —      order the defendant to pay the costs.
the fine during the period April/May 1995 to May 2000,
for which the issuing banks’ charged commission of the
abovementioned amount.
                                                                         Pleas in law and main arguments
The applicant claims that under Article 233 EC it has a right
to require the Commission to repay the costs of the guarantees.          In the contested decision the Commission found that the
The Commission is obliged to adopt the measures that follow              applicant and three other undertakings had infringed
from the judgment of 15 March 2000 and those measures                    Article 81(1) by participating in a body of agreements and
include the payment of the guarantee costs of the successful             concerted practices in the plasterboard sector. A fine of EUR
party. The Court of First Instance itself stated in the judgment         85,8 million was imposed on the applicant.
that the refund of the cost of guarantees is one of the measures
which the Commission must take under Article 233 EC.
                                                                         The applicant contests that decision and claims that it infringes
                                                                         the applicant’s rights of defence and the principle of the right
Furthermore, the applicant claims that the Commission’s                  to due process of law. It submits, inter alia, that in essence the
obligation to refund the guarantee costs also follows from               decision is based on evidence against it which has never been
Article 288(2) EC in conjunction with Article 235 EC. In no              made available to the applicant despite its requests to that