1. European Communities — Community institutions and bodies — Exercise of powers — Delegation — Conditions — European Central Bank — Delegation of powers to the Executive Board by the Governing Council concerning the adoption of the Staff Rules — Lawfulness
(Protocol on the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank, Arts 12.3 and 36.1; Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, Art. 21.3)
2. Officials — Staff of the European Central Bank — Staff Rules — Adoption by the Executive Board using powers delegated by the Governing Council — Detailed rules on the probationary period — Rules complying with the Conditions of Employment adopted by the Governing Council and within the limits of delegation
(Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, Art. 21.3; Conditions of Employment for Staff of the European Central Bank, Arts 10(b) and 11(a)(i))
3. European Central Bank — Powers of internal organisation — Delegation by the Executive Board of the Bank to the Vice-President of the power to adopt decisions extending the probationary period of newly recruited staff — Permissible
4. Officials — Staff of the European Central Bank — Recruitment — Probationary period — Exceptional circumstances in which an extension may be justified — Doubts as to the ability of an employee — Included
(European Central Bank Staff Rules, Art. 2.1.2)
5. Appeals — Grounds — Incorrect assessment of the facts — Inadmissible — Review by the Court of the assessment of the evidence — Excluded except in cases of distortion
(Art. 225(1) EC; EC Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 51, first para.)
6. Appeals — Grounds — Plea challenging the decision of the Court of First Instance on costs — Inadmissible where all other pleas rejected
(EC Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 51, second para.)
1. A Community institution or body is entitled to lay down a body of measures of an organisational nature, delegating powers to its own internal decision-making bodies, in particular as regards the management of its own staff.
Such delegations of powers must comply with a number of conditions. First, a delegating authority cannot confer on the authority to which the powers are delegated powers different from those which it has itself received. Next, the exercise of the powers entrusted to the body to which the powers are delegated must be subject to the same conditions as those to which it would be subject if the delegating authority exercised them directly, particularly as regards the requirements to state reasons and to publish. Finally, even when entitled to delegate its powers, the delegating authority must take an express decision transferring them and the delegation can relate only to clearly defined executive powers.
The delegations of powers effected within the European Central Bank in regard to staff comply fully with those conditions. The Governing Council of the Bank, which is competent to adopt the conditions of employment of the staff and, in particular, the Conditions of Employment themselves, has expressly provided in Article 21.3 of the Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank that it is for the Executive Board to adopt and amend the rules implementing the Conditions of Employment.
(see paras 42-45)
2. Articles 2.1.2 and 2.1.3 of the Staff Rules of the European Central Bank, laid down by the Executive Board, which provide for a number of circumstances which may arise during the probationary period and permit inter alia both extension of the probationary period and termination of contract during that period, remain within the limits of the executive powers conferred on the Executive Board of the Bank by Article 21.3 of the Bank’s Rules of Procedure.
Those provisions do not infringe Article 10(b) of the Conditions of Employment for Staff of the European Central Bank, which provides that the Executive Board may establish a system of probationary periods in accordance with the provisions laid down in the Staff Rules. Nor do they exceed the limits laid down by Article 11(a)(i) of the Conditions of Employment as regards the circumstances in which the Bank may terminate contracts concluded with its staff.
Since the Executive Board is authorised under Article 10(b) of the Conditions of Employment to adopt detailed rules governing the probationary period, it remained within the limits of its powers in that context in providing that, in the course of that period, during which particular attention is paid to the performance of the employee concerned, a contract may be terminated ‘should … performance or suitability prove inadequate’. In a situation where the Executive Board may terminate the contract during the probationary period, it must a fortiori have the right to extend that period unilaterally.
(see paras 47-50)
3. The Community institutions and bodies enjoy powers of internal organisation whereby their collegiate bodies may delegate to one or more of their members the power to adopt staff management decisions of an individual nature in a context which has already been the subject of general rules adopted by the collegiate body concerned.
A decision of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank delegating to the Vice-President the power to adopt decisions extending the probationary period of newly recruited staff is a valid conferment of authority. Such a decision does not have the effect of divesting the Executive Board of its rule-making power, but is limited to individual decisions relating to the extension of the probationary period of a newly recruited member of staff and does not in any way cover matters of a general nature. Moreover, decisions to extend the probationary period adopted by the Vice-President of the Bank are adopted in the name of the Executive Board, which is fully responsible for them.
(see paras 57, 60)
4. The European Central Bank enjoys wide discretion in the management of its staff so as to enable it to discharge the public service responsibilities conferred on it.
It follows that, particularly during the probationary period, a Community institution or body must satisfy itself that the probationer meets all the personal and professional requirements needed to fill the post for which he was recruited and to perform the duties connected with it. In that context, an extension of the probationary period may be an appropriate measure for that purpose.
Consequently, the existence of doubts as to the ability of a newly recruited employee can constitute an ‘exceptional circumstance’ for the purposes of Article 2.1.2 of the Staff Rules of the European Central Bank, justifying an extension of his probationary period.
(see paras 71-73)
5. The Court of Justice has no jurisdiction, in the context of an appeal, to establish the facts or, in principle, to examine the evidence which the Court of First Instance accepted in support of those facts. Provided that the evidence has been properly obtained and that the general principles of law and the rules of procedure in relation to the burden of proof and the taking of evidence have been observed, it is for the Court of First Instance alone to assess the value which should be attached to the evidence produced to it. That appraisal does not therefore constitute, save where the clear sense of the evidence has been distorted, a point of law which is subject to review by the Court of Justice.
(see para. 78)
6. Where all the other pleas put forward in an appeal have been rejected, any plea challenging the decision of the Court of First Instance on costs must be rejected as inadmissible by virtue of the second paragraph of Article 51 of the Statute of the Court of Justice, which states that no appeal shall lie regarding only the amount of the costs or the party ordered to pay them.
(see para. 88)