Case Law

Examines the 12 September 2006 Judgment of the Grand Chamber in Case C-131/03 P, R. J. Reynolds Tobacco & Others v. Commission, which addresses admissibility in actions for annulment initiated by private parties, especially the condition that the challenged measure must call for binding legal effects capable of altering the applicant's legal position. The judgment affects such important issues as the limits of judicial review in controlling Community action & the principle of effective judicial protection in Community law. The case dealt with an action for annulment brought by the tobacco companies against Commission decisions to bring legal proceedings against them. The Commission initiated a civil action to seek compensation for lost customs duties & value-added tax resulting from the smuggling of cigarettes into Europe. A detailed description of the judgments of the Community Courts is followed by a look at the legal aspects of the attempt by the tobacco companies to prevent the Commission from bringing similar actions by claiming the decisions of the Community courts were unlawful. J. Lindroth