In his Opinion delivered on Thursday 27 June (Case C-726/22), Advocate General Nicholas Emiliou proposes that the Court of Justice of the EU should dismiss the appeal brought by the European Commission, which had refused to grant access to documents requested by an NGO, Pollinis France.
The Advocate General considers that the Court of First Instance did not err in law in finding that the decision-making process was no longer ongoing, since the decision in question had already been made.
Pollinis France, which wants to protect wild and common bees, asked the Commission on 27 January and 8 April 2020 for access to documents relating to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) guidance document on the risk assessment of plant protection products for bees (2013 document).
In two decisions, the Commission refused access to certain documents and granted partial access to certain other documents relating to this guidance document.
The refusals of access were based on the exception relating to the protection of the privacy and integrity of the individual and that relating to the protection of the decision-making process in progress, provided for in Regulation 1049/2001 on public access to documents. In 2022, the Tribunal annulled these decisions insofar as they refused access to the documents requested. The Commission has appealed against this judgment to the Court of Justice. In his Opinion, the Advocate General considers that the Court of First Instance's approach is consistent with the principle of interpretation according to which exceptions and derogations from the general scheme or rules of a legal instrument are to be interpreted strictly. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)