Europa A complaint directed against a decision of a selection board appears to be pointless, as the institution concerned has no authority to annul or amend the decisions of a selection board, and therefore the only legal remedy open to those concerned by such a decision lies in a direct application to the court.
However, where a complaint is nevertheless submitted, the prescribed period begins to run, in accordance with article 91 of the staff regu lations, from the day on which the decision taken in reply to the complaint is notified to the person concerned.
A selection board for a competition enjoys a wide discretion and the court has no jurisdiction to review its value judgments. However, the board must proceed on the basis of objective criteria which are known to each of the candidates and it must state adequately the grounds on which its decision is based. It is for that reason that indent (e) of the second subparagraph of article 1(1) of annex iii to the staff regulations provides that the notice of competition, drawn up by the appointing authority, must specify inter alia, where the competition is on the basis of tests, of what kind they will be and how they will be marked.
In view of the importance for the subsequent career of officials of recruitment by way of competition, it must be ensured that criteria for assessment which are objective and equal for all the candidates are strictly applied. It follows that the candidates in a competition are entitled to expect that tests which take place simultaneously in different places are entirely identical and, in addition, they should receive formal and accurate information as to the result of the tests which they have taken. Where irregularities or errors have occurred in the course of a competition and cannot be rectified by a repetition of the tests, with the result that the only alternative is the application of a corrective factor in the assessment of the tests, that factor must be applied unequivocally and the person concerned is entitled to be informed of the criteria adopted.
Where, in an open competition for the purpose of constituting a reserve for future recruitment, the court annuls the decision of the selection board not to place a candidate on a reserve list, the rights of the person concerned are adequately protected if the board and the appointing authority reconsider their decisions and seek a just solution in his case. It is not necessary to call in question the entire result of the competition or to annual the appointments which have been made as a result thereof.
Citations:
C-144/82, [1983] EUECJ C-144/82
Links:
European
Updated: 21 May 2022; Ref: scu.133442