Dear Mr X,

On 18 September 2019, you submitted a complaint^[1] to the European Ombudsman against the European Commission as regards how it dealt with your infringement complaint CHAP(2018)00143 against Germany. The Ombudsman has asked me to deal with your complaint and reply to you on her behalf.

Your infringement complaint to the Commission concerned alleged violations of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the Brussels IIa Regulation and the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU). In particular, you argued that, by not admitting your constitutional complaint, the German Federal Constitutional Court violated your right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial, the EU rules on child abduction and its obligation, under TFEU, to refer to the EU Court for a preliminary ruling on the interpretation of these rules.

In your complaint to the Ombudsman, you contend that the Commission was wrong to find that Germany had not breached the above aspects of EU law. You also argue that the Commission did not handle your case objectively and that it was wrong to then discontinue correspondence with you on the matter.

After a careful analysis of all the information you provided with your complaint, we have decided to close the inquiry with the following conclusion:

The information provided in the complaint does not give reason for concluding that the European Commission acted with maladministration.

When it comes to infringement complaints, the Ombudsman may examine whether the Commission has kept the complainant properly informed as regards progress in the case and the position it eventually takes. In addition, the Ombudsman may examine whether the complainant has been given the opportunity to comment on the position of the Commission before the Commission closes a case.

We note that the Commission gave you the opportunity to comment on its position before it closed the case. While we take note of the Commission´s delay in finalising its assessment of your case, we also note that the Commission provided you with clear information as regards why it closed your complaint, addressing all aspects put forward by you (the alleged violation of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the Brussels IIa Regulation and the TFEU). The Commission has also informed you that it does not consider your case to constitute evidence of systemic non-compliance by Germany with EU law.

 Regarding your allegation about the lack of objectivity, we find nothing to suggest that the Commission acted in a biased way. The fact that your case was dealt with by a Commission staff member who had previously dealt with another complaint of yours is not, as such, evidence of bias.

Finally, regarding the Commission´s decision to discontinue communication with you on the matter, please note that the Commission has the right to do so, in case of, among other things, repetitive or pointless correspondence^[2].

In light of the above, we find that there is no evidence of maladministration in how the Commission handled your infringement complaint. We therefore close the case.

While we understand that you will be disappointed with this outcome, we hope you find these explanations helpful.

Yours sincerely,

 

Tina Nilsson

Head of Inquiries - Unit 4

Strasbourg, 16/10/2019

 

[1] Full information on the procedure and rights pertaining to complaints can be found at https://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/document/70707.

[2] Article 14 of the European Code of Good Administrative Behaviour and Article 4 of the Commission´s Code of Good Administrative Behaviour.