ECJ: European Standards Should be Freely Accessible
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that harmonised technical standards are part of EU law and should therefore be freely accessible to EU citizens (Judgment of 05.03.2024, ref. C-588/21 P).
The Court recalls in its press relaese that EU law guarantees any citizen of the European Union, and any natural or legal person residing in a Member State, access to documents, including those held by the European Commission. Access to a document may however be refused where its disclosure would undermine the protection of commercial interests of a natural or legal person, including intellectual property, unless there is an overriding public interest in disclosure.
In the present case, the harmonised standards relate to the safety of toys and form part of EU law.
The Legal Tribune Online also reports critical voices: "The consequences of this ruling are still uncertain. Until now, companies that carry out standardisation work have financed themselves by selling access to these standards. Critics now fear negative consequences for the economic system, industry and consumer protection standards".
Sources:
Legal Tribune Online: News
ECJ: Press release
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