CJEU Case C-14/19 / Judgment

European Union Satellite Centre v KF.
Deciding body type
Court of Justice of the European Union
Deciding body
Court (Second Chamber)
Type
Decision
Decision date
25/06/2020
ECLI (European case law identifier)
ECLI:EU:C:2020:492
  • CJEU Case C-14/19 / Judgment

    Key facts of the case:

    Appeal — Staff of the European Union Satellite Centre (SatCen) — Member of SatCen’s contract staff — Complaints of psychological harassment — Administrative investigation — Request for assistance — Suspension of the staff member — Disciplinary proceedings — Removal of the staff member — SatCen’s Appeals Board — Conferral of exclusive jurisdiction in relation to SatCen staff disputes — Action for annulment — First and fifth paragraphs of Article 263 TFEU — Action for damages — Article 268 TFEU — Jurisdiction of the EU judicature — Admissibility — Acts open to challenge — Contractual nature of the dispute — Articles 272 and 274 TFEU — Effective judicial protection — Final sentence of the second subparagraph of Article 24(1) TEU — First paragraph of Article 275 TFEU — Principle of equal treatment — General Court’s obligation to state reasons — Distortion of the facts and evidence — Rights of the defence — Principle of sound administration.

    Outcome of the case:

    On those grounds, the Court (Second Chamber) hereby:

    1. Dismisses the appeal;
    2. Orders the European Union Satellite Centre (SatCen) to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by KF;
    3. Orders the Council of the European Union to bear its own costs.
  • Paragraphs referring to EU Charter

    115) Article 41 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, entitled ‘Right to good administration’, provides, in paragraph 1 thereof, that every person has the right to have his or her affairs handled impartially, fairly and within a reasonable time by the institutions and bodies of the Union.

    116) Article 41(2) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights provides that the right to good administration includes, first, the right of every person to be heard before any individual measure which would affect him or her adversely is taken, second, the right of every person to have access to his or her file, while respecting the legitimate interests of confidentiality and of professional and business secrecy and, third, the obligation on the administration to give reasons for its decisions.