Nord Stream 2 AG v European Parliament and Council of the European Union

In its Order on 20 May 2020 the General Court in Nord Stream 2 v Parliament and Council ruled the application inadmissible. The case raises some important questions as to the standing requirements for private persons directly challenging EU acts before the EU courts. It appears that the main reason for refusal to grant the appellant standing to directly challenge the amendments to the 2009 Gas Market Directive stems from the fact that the EU act under challenge is a Directive that requires implementation at national level. This in turn, according to the General Court, implies that there is no ‘direct concern’. Nord Stream 2 v Parliament and Council is a case that turns largely on its facts and it may be that the General Court’s approach does not take this into consideration. This is a case where the intended effect of the amendment is to complicate one project, Nord Stream 2, and leave other comparable import pipelines unaffected. This podcast will examine the Order of the General Court and provide certain degree of criticism to the approach taken by the Court. The podcast is based on an OGEL article that is available here: https://www.ogel.org/journal-advance-publication-article.asp?key=678