EU Law and Practice Contributed by: Edward Borovikov, Laurens Engelen, Aurore Ancion and Semen Medvedkov, Dentons
March 2023 sanctions, concluding that Mr Ezubov’s association with Mr Deripaska justified the measures under the associated person criterion. In Tokareva v Council (Case T 744/22), the General Court annulled sanctions listing against Maya Toka - reva, finding that the Council had erred by listing her based solely on associations with other listed indi - viduals without adequate evidence linking her assets to her father’s influence. By contrast, in Abramovich v Council (Case T 313/22), the General Court upheld the listing of Roman Abram - ovich, confirming the existence of a clear and material link with entities supporting the Russian government. Meanwhile, in Mazepin v Council (Case T 282/22), the Court annulled the designation of Nikita Mazepin, the son of a listed oligarch, holding that mere familial ties did not suffice to justify restrictive measures without further evidence of involvement. These decisions underline the courts’ insistence that sanctions listings must rely on verifiable, individual - ised evidence and cannot be maintained based on vague affiliations or outdated assumptions. EU Blocking Statute In the EU, a blocking statute was first adopted by way of Council Regulation (EC) No 2271/96 in response to US sanctions against Iran, Cuba and Libya having extraterritorial effects. This Regulation was updated in August 2018 to shield EU individuals and entities aiming to do business in Iran from legal consequences in the USA resulting from US extraterritorial sanctions. In Case T-8/21, IFIC Holding AG v Commission, the EU General Court confirmed its position regarding the EU Blocking Statute protecting EU companies from complying with US sanctions on Iran. This specific case involved a German company, IFIC, which chal - lenged the Commission’s decision to allow a bank (Clearstream) to withhold their dividend payments due to US sanctions. The General Court ruled in favour of the Commission, finding that:
• the Commission does not need to consider the interests of companies on the US sanctions list (like IFIC); • the Commission does not have to explore less harmful options before granting permission to comply with US sanctions; • companies on the US sanctions list do not have the right to be heard in the authorisation process; and • the authorisation to comply with US sanctions only applies from the date it has been granted, not retroactively. Claims for Damages In its decision of February 2023, the CJEU rejected a claim by Oleksandr Klymenko, Ukraine’s former rev - enue minister. Mr Klymenko sought financial compen - sation because he was placed on the EU’s sanctions list. While the Court acknowledged the EU made mis - takes, they were not serious enough to warrant finan - cial payout. Though the Court found the EU’s actions in 2021 could be considered a reason for compensa - tion, Mr Klymenko could not prove enough damage or a clear connection between the sanctions and his losses. Legal Services and Advisory Bans The General Court and CJEU have also recently clari - fied the scope of the EU’s prohibitions on the provision of legal services to Russian entities. In Jemerak (Case C 109/23, September 2024), the CJEU ruled that notarial services do not fall within the scope of the advisory services ban imposed under Article 5n of Council Regulation (EU) No 833/2014. The Court distinguished between legal representa - tion in judicial proceedings, which remains permitted, and general legal advice, which is prohibited where it may support sanctioned actors. In the Commission’s guidance (which is not legally binding) as regards EU sanctions targeting Russia, it is specified that notary services do not fall within the scope of legal services in legal systems where a notary, acting with complete independence and impartiality and with a legal obli - gation incumbent on him or her, authenticates a con - tract for the sale of immovable property owned by a legal person established in Russia without providing,
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