Dear Mr M.,
I refer to your letter of 19 October 1999 in which you comment on the Commission's opinion on your complaint.
After a careful examination of your complaint, the European Ombudsman had contacted the Commission on 16 September 1999 with a request to comment on your complaint. By letter of 15 October 1999, you indicated to the European Ombudsman that you might be able to reach an acceptable solution within the following weeks. You therefore asked the Ombudsman to suspend the investigation. By letter of 29 November 1999, you informed the Ombudsman that a solution to the problems concerning your contractual relations with the Commission has been found. You stated that you therefore intended to withdraw the complaint.
In your letter of 19 October 1999, you claimed that your complaint concerned aspects which should be separated from the issues raised in the case brought before the Court of First Instance. You claimed that these aspects consisted in the refusal of the Commission to provide you with proper answers both to your request for a remarking of your paper and for information on, and access to, your marked paper.
The Treaty establishing the European Community and the Statute of the European Ombudsman set precise conditions as to the admissibility of a complaint. The Ombudsman can only start an inquiry if these conditions are met.
One of the conditions is :

Art.1.3 - Statute of the European Ombudsman:

"The Ombudsman may not intervene in cases before courts or question the soundness of a court's ruling."

Another of the conditions is :

Art.2.7 - Statute of the European Ombudsman:

"When the Ombudsman, because of legal proceedings in progress or concluded concerning the facts which have been put forward, has to declare a complaint inadmissible or terminate consoderation of it, the outcome of any enquiries he has carried out up to that point shall be filed without further action."

As there is a case concerning the facts which have been put forward by you pending before the Court of First Instance, I have decided to terminate consideration of your complaint and to file the outcome of the inquiries carried out so far without further action.
The President of the European Commission will also be informed of this decision.
Yours sincerely
Jacob SÖDERMAN