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How the European Commission dealt with a request for public access to a legal opinion on the German constitutional court’s ruling about the European Central Bank (ECB) and European Court of Justice


Case 1700/2020/OAM - Opened on Friday | 09 October 2020 - Decision on Wednesday | 27 January 2021 - Institution concerned European Commission ( No maladministration found )

The complainant sought public access to a legal opinion of the European Commission's legal service on a ruling by the German constitutional court that concerned the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Court of Justice of the EU. The Commission refused access, invoking an exception under the EU's rules on public access to documents, and stating that disclosing the documents could undermine the EU's financial, monetary and economic policy, as well as the Commission's legal advice and its decision-making process.

The Ombudsman inspected the document and found that the Commission was justified in withholding access. She thus closed the inquiry, finding no maladministration.