Deutsche Post's Action for Annulment of the Commission's Information Injunction Found Admissible but Unsubstantiated

• Published in: European state aid law quarterly Vol. 13; no. 3; p. 591
• Main Authors: Haak, Andreas, Thamm, Athina
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin Lexxion Verlagsgesellschaft mbH 01.07.2014
• Subjects: Court decisions; Endorsements; Universal service; Germany
• ISSN: 1619-5272; 2190-8184

In the long-lasting dispute on State aid for Deutsche Post AG, the General Court judged in November 2013 on the annulment of an information injunction issued by the European Commission in the course of its State aid investigation. The Commission had requested extensive information from Germany going beyond the actual time period during which Deutsche Post AG had received State aid, and had argued that such information was necessary in order to assess the long-term effects of the relevant compensation payments. After appeals proceedings before the European Court of Justice, the General Court finally judged that Deutsche Post AG as the claimant had a legitimate interest in bringing the proceedings although the State aid investigation had been closed in the meantime and Germany had complied with the Commission's information injunction. Yet, the General Court held that the Commission has a wide discretion when requesting information in the course of State aid investigations and ruled Deutsche Post AG's action for annulment to be unsubstantiated. While the present judgment establishes a rather low threshold for a claimant's legal interest in bringing the proceedings, it endorses the Commission's approach in large-scale State aid investigations and confirms that the Commission shall not be limited to request data only for time periods in which compensation payments by a Member State actually occurred.