EU Court denies non-appealing cartelist reimbursement of its fine

The General Court has ruled that a non-appealing addressee of an infringement decision that is subsequently partially annulled is not entitled to reimbursement of its fine.

In December 2014, the General Court confirmed that the Commission was entitled to take the contested decision (in 2009).  Feralpi Holding SpA, Ferriera Valsabbia SpA and Valsabbia Investimenti SpA, Alfa Acciai SpA, Ferriere Nord SpA and Riva Fire SpA (but not Lucchini) appealed to the Court of Justice.  The Court held that the General Court had erred in concluding that the Commission was not obliged to hold a new hearing following a previous finding of annulment.

Lucchini claimed that the Commission's refusals to reimburse the fine it paid and to invite it to participate in the subsequent proceedings that had been reopened in the meantime breached its rights of defence.

The General Court dismissed the appeal and held that as Lucchini did not lodge an appeal against the 2014 judgment the decision of 2009 became final with regard to Lucchini.

The case is a reminder that non-appealing parties may not be able to benefit from a judgment that is favourable to their competitors down the line.

Case T-185/18 – Lucchini SpA v European Commission, ECLI:EU:T:2019:298