Judgment_paragraph 69 · Italian Republic v Commission of the European Communities (C-55/91)

69By the same token, the complaint alleging that the Commission was late in responding cannot be accepted. The Court has consistently held (see, in particular, Case 349/85 Denmark v Commission [1988] ECR 169) that, in the absence of any sanction attaching to the failure by the Commission to comply with the time-limit laid down by Article 5(2)(b) of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70 for taking a decision on the clearance of the accounts as regards expenditure financed by the EAGGF, that time-limit cannot be regarded as mandatory, provided that the interests of the Member State are not impaired. Consequently, the duration of that period, even if it is very long, does not cause the Community to incur liability, unless it is the outcome of negligence on its part. In this case, the Italian Republic has not proved such negligence.

Italian Republic v Commission of the European Communities (C-55/91)

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