Order of the General Court (Seventh Chamber) of 24 May 2011 – Nuova Agricast v Commission
(Case T-373/08)
Non-contractual liability – Aid scheme under Italian legislation – Scheme declared compatible with the common market – Transitional measure – Exclusion of certain undertakings – Principle of the protection of legitimate expectations – Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law conferring rights on individuals – None – Clear lack of jurisdiction – Action manifestly devoid of any basis in law
1. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Unlawfulness – Damage – Causal link – One of the conditions not satisfied – Claim for compensation dismissed in its entirety (Art. 288, second para., EC) (see paras 50, 92-93)
2. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Sufficiently serious breach of a rule of law intended to confer rights on individuals – Discretion of the institution when adopting the measure – Need to be taken into consideration when examining liability (Art. 288, second para., EC) (see para. 72)
3. State aid – General aid scheme approved by the Commission – Identification of individual aids falling within the temporal scope of that scheme – Date of the legally binding measure requiring the competent national authority to grant the aid – Strict interpretation of derogations from the prohibition of State aid precluding the extension of the temporal scope of an approved aid scheme (Art. 87 EC) (see paras 76-78)
4. State aid – Commission decision not to raise objections to an aid scheme – Limitation of the temporal effects of the decision – Breach of principle of the protection of legitimate expectations – None – Breach of principle of equal treatment – None (Art. 87 EC) (see paras 84, 88)
Re:
ACTION for non-contractual liability seeking compensation for damage allegedly suffered by the applicant as a result of the Commission’s adopting the decision of 12 July 2000 not to raise objections to a State aid scheme in the form of aid for investment in disadvantaged regions of Italy (Aid No 715/99 – Italy (SG 2000 D/105754) and by reason of the Commission’s conduct prior to the adoption of that decision.
Operative part
1.
The action is dismissed.
2.
Nuova Agricast Srl is ordered to pay the costs.
Top