Ordonnances nº T-127/09 AJ of Tribunal de Première Instance des Communautés Européennes, October 26, 2009

• Resolution Date: October 26, 2009
• Issuing Organization: Tribunal de Première Instance des Communautés Européennes
• Decision Number: T-127/09 AJ

In Case T‑127/09 AJ,

Abdulbasit Abdulrahim, residing in London (United Kingdom), represented by J. Jones, Barrister, and M. Arani, Solicitor,

applicant,

v

Council of the European Union, represented by E. Finnegan and R. Szostak, acting as Agents,

and

Commission of the European Communities, represented by P. Aalto, acting as Agent,

defendants,

APPLICATION for legal aid,

THE PRESIDENT OF THE SEVENTH CHAMBER OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

makes the following

Order

1 By an application a copy of whose signed original was received at the Court Registry by fax on 16 March 2009, with certified copies and the signed original received at the Registry on 26 March and 15 April 2009 respectively, Mr Abdulbasit Abdulrahim brought an action against the Council and the Commission, first, for the annulment in part of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1330/2008 of 22 December 2008 amending for the 103rd time Council Regulation (EC) No 881/2002 imposing certain specific restrictive measures directed against certain persons and entities associated with Usama bin Laden, the Al-Qaida network and the Taliban (OJ 2008 L 345, p. 60), and, secondly, for compensation in respect of the damage allegedly caused by that act.

2 By document lodged at the Registry of the Court of First Instance on 20 March 2009, Mr Abdulrahim made an application for legal aid under Article 94 of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of First Instance.

3 In support of that application, he submits in particular, on the basis of supporting documents which he produces, that: he himself receives a net salary of GBP 400 per month, while his wife receives GBP 500 per month in family allowances; he has three dependent children; his pizza business has stopped and is making a loss as a result of the contested regulation being adopted; and he has been granted legal aid in the United Kingdom.

4 By letter from the Registry of 25 May 2009, the Court of First Instance invited the defendants to submit observations on Mr Abdulrahim’s application for legal aid.

5 In its observations, lodged at the Registry on 8 June 2009, the Council contends, as its main argument, that the action for annulment brought by Mr Abdulrahim is manifestly inadmissible since it was lodged out of time and that, in accordance with Article 94(3) of the Rules of Procedure, legal aid should therefore be refused. The Council argues that the time-limit for bringing an action for annulment of Regulation No 1330/2008 expired on 16 March 2009, allowance being made for the extension on account of distance, whereas the original of the application was lodged at the Registry on 15 April 2009, there being no proof of its transmission by fax prior to that date. As to the application for legal aid, that was lodged on 20 March 2009, that is four days after the expiry of the period prescribed.

6 In the alternative, the Council contends that no evidence was provided in support of Mr Abdulrahim’s assertion that he was granted legal aid in the United Kingdom. The Council therefore enquires whether a certificate issued by the competent national authority, within the meaning of Article...