It is up to the national court to determine whether procedural acts of the European Public Prosecutor's Office that are likely to affect the legal position of persons challenging them should be subject to judicial review, ruled the Court of Justice of the European Union in a judgment handed down on Tuesday 8 April (case C-292/23).
In Spain, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office is conducting a criminal investigation into fraud involving EU subsidies. The individuals involved in this investigation are challenging the summoning of a witness by the European Delegated Prosecutors, who operate on a decentralised basis. However, Spanish law only authorises judicial review of administrative measures in certain cases expressly provided for, which do not include the summoning of witnesses.
In its judgment, the Court emphasises that it is for the competent national court to determine, after a specific examination, whether the summoning of witnesses is likely to affect the legal position of the persons under investigation. If this is the case, the summoning of witnesses must be subject to judicial review.
Moreover, the Court adds, where provision is made for a direct action to challenge a similar decision by national authorities, the same possibility must exist in respect of acts of the European Public Prosecutor's Office.
See the judgment of the Court of Justice: https://aeur.eu/f/gbr (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)