Sky ECC: EU Court rejects FF’s appeal over damages claim against Europol
The EU Court of Justice dismissed FF’s appeal on 12 March 2026 in a damages case involving Sky ECC data. The decision concerns insufficient evidence of personal harm and procedural rules.
FF says he faces drug-trafficking proceedings in Belgium based on Sky ECC messages. His original case, Sky ECC III, targeted Europol and Eurojust and included a €30,000 claim for non-material damage. The General Court dismissed it on 26 June 2025 in T-484/24.
In appeal C-566/25 P, FF mainly challenged the rejection of his damages claim against Europol. He sought €15,000 or symbolic compensation. He did not challenge the dismissal concerning Eurojust. The issues were whether he had sufficiently proved his own harm and whether the alleged unlawfulness had to be examined first.
The Court explained that the conditions for EU liability are cumulative. Where actual damage is not established, a court need not first decide whether the data processing was unlawful. FF had not provided the General Court with sufficient evidence that the alleged harm affected him personally. An official report first produced on appeal was out of time.
The appeal was dismissed as partly manifestly inadmissible and partly manifestly unfounded. FF bears his own costs.
