COURT JUDGMENT - GRADING UPON RECRUITMENT ON OR AFTER 1 MAY 2004

This Administrative Notice concerns the issue of grading upon recruitment of officials on or after 1 May 2004 (in application of Articles 12(3) and 13(1) of Annex XIII of the revised Staff Regulations) and the Court of Justice's judgment in case C-443/07P, which upholds in its entirety the judgment of the Court of First Instance (case T-58/05, Centeno Mediavilla v Commission, ECR-SC p. II-2523). This means that all officials who are in the same factual situation as those involved in cases T-58/05-C-443/07P will retain the grades attributed to them upon their recruitment.

Background

Since 1 May 2004, the date of entry into force of the revised Staff Regulations which among other things introduced a new career structure, a significant number of officials who joined the Commission on or after that date introduced complaints pursuant to Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations and subsequently appeals to the Court of First Instance/Civil Service Tribunal, contesting the grade attributed to them on the basis of the revised Staff Regulations. Their arguments were based on alleged violations of the principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination, of Article 31(1) of the revised Staff Regulations (appointment to the grade set out in the notice of competition), of Article 5 of the revised Staff Regulations and the principle regarding the correspondence between posts and grades, and of the principles of non-retroactivity, acquired rights, legitimate expectations and proper administration.

In its judgment of 11 July 2007 in case T-58/05, Centeno Mediavilla v Commission, ECR-SC p. II-2523, which was chosen as a test-case on this issue, the Court of First Instance rejected all of the arguments put forward by the appellants. The latter subsequently lodged an appeal with the Court of Justice.

The Court of Justice has now, on 22 December 2008, in case C-443/07P, upheld in its entirety the judgment of the Court of First Instance.

The practical implications of the Court’s judgment

In order to avoid the proliferation of complaints and appeals, the Appointing Authority published its commitment to extend the effects of possible favourable future judgments by the Community judges to all of the colleagues concerned, regardless of whether they had or had not contested their grading by lodging complaints pursuant to Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations and/or subsequent appeals (see Administrative Notices n° 59-2005 of 20 July 2005 and n° 46-2006 of 21 September 2006).

Now that the Court of Justice has rejected the final appeal on this issue, all officials who are in the same factual situation as those involved in cases T-58/05-C-443/07P will retain the grades attributed to them upon their recruitment, i.e.

• Those who successfully passed an open competition the notice of which was published indicating the career structure applicable under the Staff Regulations in force until 30 April 2004,
   
• who were recruited as officials on or after 1 May 2004,
   
• and who were graded pursuant to the provisions of Articles 12(3) and 13(1) of Annex XIII of the revised Staff Regulations.