CELEX: C2005/182/78
Language: en
Date: 2005-07-23 00:00:00
Title: Case T-198/05: Action brought on 13 May 2005 by Mebrom NV against the Commission of the European Communities

23.7.2005   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 182/41
            
         Action brought on 13 May 2005 by Mebrom NV against the Commission of the European Communities
   (Case T-198/05)
   (2005/C 182/78)
   Language of the case: English
   An action against the Commission of the European Communities was brought before the Court of First Instance of the European Communities on 13 May 2005 by Mebrom NV, established in Rieme-Ertvelde (Belgium), represented by C. Mereu and K. Van Maldegem, lawyers.
   The applicant claims that the Court should:
   
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               order the European Commission to pay to the applicant the amount requested through the present application for the damage suffered by the applicant as a result of the defendant's failure to establish a system allowing the applicant to import Methyl Bromide in January and February 2005, or any other amount as further established by the applicant in the course of these proceedings or by the Court ex aequo et bono;
            
         
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               in the alternative, rule on interlocutory judgment that the European Commission is obliged to make reparation for the loss suffered and order the parties to produce to the Court within a reasonable period from the date of the judgment figures as to the amount of the compensation agreed between the parties or, failing agreement, order the parties to produce to the Court within the same period their submissions with detailed figures in support;
            
         
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               order the European Commission to pay to the applicant a compensatory interest of 8 % per annum;
            
         
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               order the Commission to pay an interest of 8 %, or any other appropriate rate to be determined by the Court, calculated on the amount payable as from the date of the Court's judgment until actual payment; and
            
         
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               order the Commission to pay all costs and expenses in these proceedings.
            
         Pleas in law and main arguments
   The applicant imports Methyl Bromide (MBr) in the EU. Methyl Bromide is a controlled substance within the meaning of Regulation (EC) No 2037/2000 of the European Parliament and Council of 29 June 2000 on substances that deplete the ozone layer (1). The applicant states that it can therefore only import Methyl Bromide subject to the presentation of an import licence and the nominal allocation of a 12-month import quota established by the defendant each year.
   With the present action, the applicant claims compensation for damages allegedly suffered as a direct consequence of the defendant's unlawful failure to establish a system in accordance with Articles 6 and 7 of Regulation No 2037/2000 allowing the applicant to obtain import licences and import quotas for the import of Methyl Bromide in the European Union in January and February 2005.
   In support of its application, the applicant submits that the defendant breached Articles 6 and 7 of Regulation 2037/2000, which oblige the Commission to allocate licences and quotas for the import of Methyl Bromide in the EU for each 12-month period after 31 December 1999. The applicant submits furthermore a violation of the principles of sound administration and the duty of care, requiring the Commission to act diligently, impartially and in a timely fashion, as well as a violation of the principles of legal certainty and legitimate expectations.
   The applicant states that the damage suffered by it as a result of the defendant's unlawful conduct consists of the lost profit that the applicant would have made by importing and subsequently selling Methyl Bromide during these two months.
   
      (1)  OJ L 244, p. 1