DEVELOPMENTS Schneider Electric SA v. Commission: Regarding the Non- contractual Liability of the Commission the Decision of the Court of First Instance is Consistent with Precedent By Margherita Poto * A. The Facts The question before the Court of First Instance concerned the legitimacy of the Commission’s decision on a merger of two French companies incorporated under French law, Schneider Electric SA (hereafter Schneider SA) and Legrand SA (hereafter Legrand). On 16 February 2001 Schneider SA and Legrand, in accordance with the requirements on Regulation of mergers, notified the Commission of Schneider’s proposal to make a public offer in respect to all the shares in Legrand held by the public. The judgment of the Court of First Instance can be considered an important step in the development of the European Commission’s liability, particularly in respect to the Commission’s liability in its role as watchdog of the common market. The judgment puts flesh on the skeletal set of existing principles concerning the liability of the European Community, and contributes to the creation of a systematic approach to the case law. The Commission asked for further information, which essentially suspended the 4 month term provided for the validity of the procedure. Schneider SA challenged the Commission’s decision in the Court of Appeal of Paris. Consequently, some modifications were made to the public offer. Nevertheless, on 10 October 2001 the Commission decided that the merger infringed the rules of the common market. 1 * Dr. in Public Law, University of Pavia, Italy. Lecturer in Public law, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Faculty of Economics. I would like to thank Camilla Neema for her support and Jane Murungi for helpful remarks. All mistakes remain mine. Email: margherita.poto@unito.it. 1 See “Whereas No. 782”: “OVERALL CONCLUSION (782) For the reasons set out above, the Commission has come to the conclusion that the notified transaction would create a dominant position with the effect of significantly restricting effective competition on the following markets: the markets in moulded case circuit breakers, miniature circuit breakers and cabinets for distribution boards in Italy; the markets in miniature circuit breakers, earth leakage protection and enclosures for final panelboards in Denmark, Spain, Italy and Portugal; the markets in mains connection circuit breakers in France and Portugal; the market in cable trays in the United Kingdom; the market in sockets and switches in Greece; the market in weatherproof wiring accessories in Spain; the market in fixing and connecting equipment in France; the market in transformation equipment in France; the market in control and signalling units