Court Ruling Enhances Transparency Requirements for E.U. on Vaccine Negotiations

The European Union's General Court has ruled that the E.U. Commission must provide access to text messages exchanged between Ursula von der Leyen and Pfizer’s CEO, setting a precedent for transparency in public health negotiations.

In a landmark ruling that could redefine public transparency standards within the European Union, the General Court in Luxembourg sided with The New York Times in a case concerning access to text messages related to Covid-19 vaccine negotiations. Judges declared that the E.U. Commission must not have denied the request for disclosure concerning messages exchanged between Ursula von der Leyen, the Commission's president, and Pfizer's chief executive, Albert Bourla.

The case originated in 2023 when The New York Times sought to obtain the text messages that were exchanged while negotiating a vaccine procurement deal in 2021. Central to the legal argument was the classification of these messages under E.U. law—specifically, whether they should be considered public documents subject to transparency rules. The Commission defended its refusal, arguing that the text messages were of a ‘transitory nature’ and not pertinent to its public accountability obligations.

However, the judges firmly rejected this stance, asserting that the Commission had a responsibility not merely to claim the absence of such documents, but to provide convincing explanations to clarify the non-disclosure. The ruling emphasized that messages exchanged during critical vaccine discussions likely contained significant public interest information, consequently mandating the Commission to enhance its transparency practices in the future.