Sadam Zuccherifici, divisione della SECI - Società Esercizi Commerciali Industriali SpA, Sadam Castiglionese SpA, Sadam Abruzzo SpA, Zuccherificio del Molise SpA and Società Fondiaria Industriale Romagnola SpA (SFIR) v Council of the European Union.
Date: 2001-05-31
17 That requirement is not satisfied by an appeal which, without even including an argument specifically identifying the error of law allegedly vitiating the contested order, confines itself to repeating or reproducing word for word the pleas in law and arguments previously submitted to the Court of First Instance, including those based on facts expressly rejected by that Court. Such an appeal amounts in reality to no more than a request for re-examination of the application submitted to the Court of First Instance, which the Court of Justice does not have jurisdiction to undertake (Case C-352/98 P Bergaderm and Goupil v Commission [2000] ECR I-5291, paragraph 35).
24 As regards the appellants' first ground of appeal, it must be observed, as the Court of First Instance rightly pointed out at paragraph 17 of the contested order, that the admissibility of an action for annulment brought by a natural or legal person against a Community regulation is subject to the condition that the contested regulation is in reality a decision which concerns the applicant directly and individually. The Court of Justice has explained in this respect that the criterion for distinguishing between a regulation and a decision must be sought in the general application or otherwise of the measure in question and that an act has general application if it applies to objectively determined situations and entails legal effects for categories of persons regarded generally and in the abstract (see, inter alia, Case 307/81 Alusuisse Italia v Council and Commission [1982] ECR 3463, paragraphs 8 and 9, and the order in Case C-447/98 P Molkerei Großbraunshain and Bene Nahrungsmittel v Commission [2000] ECR I-9097, paragraph 67).
27 In relation to the second ground of appeal raised by the appellants, it must be observed, as the Court of First Instance pointed out at paragraph 19 of the contested order, that in certain circumstances a provision in a measure of general scope may be of individual concern to certain of the economic operators concerned. That is so, in particular, where the provision in question affects specific natural or legal persons by reason of certain attributes which are peculiar to them or by reason of circumstances in which they are differentiated from all other persons (Case C-358/89 Extramet Industrie v Council [1991] ECR I-2501, paragraph 13, and Case C-308/89 Codorniu v Council [1994] ECR I-1853, paragraphs 19 and 20).
29 However, it must be observed that the fact that, when Regulation No 2613/97 entered into force, the appellants were its only actual addressees as far as producers of beet sugar in southern Italy are concerned is not in itself sufficient for them to be regarded as individually concerned by the regulation. It is settled case-law that the general applicability, and thus the legislative nature, of a measure are not called into question by the fact that it is possible to determine more or less exactly the number or even the identity of the persons to whom it applies at any given time, as long as it applies to them by virtue of an objective legal or factual situation defined by the measure in question in relation to its purpose (see Case C-298/89 Gibraltar v Council [1993] ECR I-3605, paragraph 17, and Codorniu v Council, cited above, paragraph 18).