EU Court Landmark Ruling Reinforces Transparency of EU Institutions

• On May 14, 2025, the EU General Court annulled the European Commission’s decision refusing The New York Times access to text messages between the President of the Commission and the CEO of Pfizer relating to the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines for the European Union.
• The judgment confirms that EU institutions are required to diligently process applications for public access to documents and retain all relevant “documents” under the EU Transparency Regulation, including exchanges through ephemeral messaging or other informal channels.
• By failing to provide a plausible explanation as to why it had not been able to locate the text messages, the Commission breached a right protected by the EU Charter (right to good administration), which has “constitutional” status under EU law—a finding that reflects the seriousness of the breach.
• Businesses should be aware that (i) while legal avenues exist to obtain access to information held by EU institutions, the process can be lengthy and complex, and (ii) their communications with EU institutions—whether formal or informal—may fall within the scope of the Transparency Regulation and be subject to public disclosure.

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