The European Union’s non-contractual liability following country and counterterrorism sanctions: Is there anything to learn from the Safa Nicu Sepahan case?

Abstract

This article focuses on the actions aimed at compensating for the damage suffered by natural and legal persons following the imposition of EU country or counterterrorism restrictive measures. The judgments in the Safa Nicu Sepahan case, where the EU Courts deliberated for the first time on the award of non-material damage, constitute the basis for the analysis of the relevant EU jurisprudence in the field often too reluctant to award damages, in accordance with the traditional conservative approach of the EU Courts towards the non-contractual liability of the Union. Despite the award of non-material damages, the judgments in Safa Nicu Sepahan might not necessarily entail a breakthrough towards an increased willingness of EU judges to award damages in the area of country or counterterrorism restrictive measures. They would rather constitute a natural and coherent evolution of the existing case law, strictly related to the specific circumstances of the case.