Companies sue European Court over delays in proceedings

The Court of Justice of the European Union is itself being sued – because cases are taking so long to be heard.

Claims for damages have been registered by five companies over the length of time it has taken to resolve proceedings to challenge decisions of the European Commission over alleged cartel activities.

The CJEU's General Court, which hears many cases at first instance, is struggling with a sharp rise in the number of cases pending before it, trade mark disputes in particular having increased by about 50% in number to around 300 a year. Cases before that court can now take up to four years to be heard.

In one cartel case the court has already awarded damages to a Dutch company, Kendrion, after proceedings to annul a Commission decision against Kendrion took almost six years to conclude. The General Court, subsequently affirmed by the Court of Justice, dismissed the action but agreed with Kendrion that the case had taken far too long, infringing the principle of effective judicial protection enshrined in article 47 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and that the appropriate sanction was an action for damages.

To further complicate the picture, actions by individuals for damages must be raised in the General Court itself. That court has since given a ruling that the EU should be represented in such a case by the Court of Justice rather than the Commission, with any damages being paid out of the court’s own budget. The CJEU – as the umbrella body taking in both the General Court and the Court of Justice – is currently appealing that decision to the latter court.

No one has suggested a solution to the problems of independence and impartiality that arise as a result, even if a differently composed General Court hears the action of damages from that which dealt with the annulment proceedings.

Other companies have brought similar proceedings, with the total damages claimed running to more than €20 million.

The court’s workload was supposed to be tackled In 2011 by the appointment of 12 more judges, but this never happened because of member states’ failure to agree on which countries they should come from.

Member states have since agreed to double the size of the present court to 56 judges by 2019, with the first 12 additional judges being appointed in September 2015, but the European Parliament has still to approve the €14 million additional budget required, also not a foregone conclusion.