Language of file: ECLI: EU: C:2024:201
JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Grand Chamber)
5 March 2024 (*)
(Appeal — Access to files of the organizations of the European Union — Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 — Article 4( 2 ) — Exceptions — Refusal to give access to a file whose disclosure would weaken the defense of business interests of a natural or legal individual, consisting of copyright — Overriding public interest in disclosure — Harmonised requirements embraced by the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) — Protection stemming from copyright — Principle of the guideline of law — Principle of openness — Principle of openness — Principle of excellent governance)
In Case C‑588/ 21 P,
APPEAL under Article 56 of the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union, caused 23 September 2021,
Public.Resource.Org Inc., developed in Sebastopol, California (United States),
To Know CLG, developed in Dublin (Ireland),
represented by J. Hackl, C. Nüßing, Rechtsanwälte, and F. Logue, Solicitor,
appellants,
the other celebrations to the procedures being:
European Commission, represented by S. Delaude, G. Gattinara and F. Thiran, serving as Agents,
accused in the beginning circumstances,
European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), developed in Brussels (Belgium),
Asociación Española de Normalización (UNE), developed in Madrid (Spain),
Asociația de Standardizare din România (ASRO), developed in Bucharest (Romania),
Association française de normalisation (AFNOR), developed in La Plaine Saint‑Denis (France),
Austrian Standards International (ASI), developed in Vienna (Austria),
British Standards Institution (BSI), developed in London (United Kingdom),
Bureau de normalisation/Bureau voor Normalisatie (NBN), developed in Brussels,
Dansk Standard (DS), developed in Copenhagen (Denmark),
Deutsches Institut für Normung eV (DIN), developed in Berlin (Germany),
Koninklijk Nederlands Normalisatie Instituut (NEN), developed in Delft (Netherlands),
Schweizerische Normen-Vereinigung (SNV), developed in Winterthour (Switzerland),
Requirement Norge (SN), developed in Oslo (Norway),
Suomen Standardisoimisliitto ry (SFS), developed in Helsinki (Finland),
Svenska institutet för standarder (SIS), developed in Stockholm (Sweden),
Institut za standardizaciju Srbije (ISS), developed in Belgrade (Serbia),
represented by K. Dingemann, M. Kottmann and K. Reiter, Rechtsanwälte,
interveners in the beginning circumstances,
THE COURT (Grand Chamber),
made up of K. Lenaerts, President, L. Bay Larsen, Vice‑President, A. Arabadjiev, A. Prechal, E. Regan and N. Piçarra, Presidents of Chambers, M. Ilešič (Rapporteur), P.G. Xuereb, L.S. Rossi, I. Jarukaitis, A. Kumin, N. Jääskinen, N. Wahl, I. Ziemele and J. Passer, Judges,
Supporter General: L. Medina,
Registrar: M. Siekierzyńska, Administrator,
having regard to the composed treatment and more to the hearing on 15 March 2023,
after hearing the Opinion of the Advocate General at the resting on 22 June 2023,
offers the following
Judgment
1 By their appeal, Public.Resource.Org Inc. and Right to Know CLG look for to have actually reserved the judgment of the General Court of the European Union of 14 July 2021, Public.Resource.Org and Right to Know v Commission (T‑185/ 19, EU: T:2021:445, ‘the judgment under appeal’), dismissing their action for annulment of Commission Decision C( 2019) 639 last of 22 January 2019 (‘the choice at concern’),
