Greece: A Dispute Resolution Overview

Greece: Civil Justice Reform and Procedural Developments

In July 2025, the Hellenic Parliament enacted Law 5221/2025, introducing extensive and structural amendments to the Greek Code of Civil Procedure. The core provisions of the reform entered into force on 1 January 2026 and form part of a comprehensive legislative initiative designed to accelerate the administration of civil justice, enhance the quality and accessibility of judicial services, and reinforce public confidence in the judicial system.

The reform advances a policy agenda centred on procedural efficiency, digital transformation, and stricter case management. To this end, the legislature has introduced significant modifications concerning the allocation of jurisdiction, the conduct of proceedings, and the imposition of binding procedural timetables. The principal changes may be outlined as follows.

Redistribution of jurisdiction

Following the abolition of the Magistrates’ Courts and the consolidation of first-instance civil jurisdiction pursuant to the new judicial map established by Law 5108/2024 (in force since 16 September 2024), the jurisdiction of the Single-Member Court of First Instance has been considerably expanded. The reform thereby completes the institutional restructuring of first-instance adjudication, concentrating a broader spectrum of civil disputes within a unified judicial forum.

Commencement of proceedings and service of process

Under the new regime, upon the filing of a lawsuit – whether through the Court Registry or by electronic means –the hearing date is fixed ab initio, ordinarily six to seven months thereafter. Where service abroad is required, the hearing is scheduled approximately nine to ten months from filing.

Service of the action in ordinary proceedings must be completed within 30 days either upon a defendant residing in Greece or, where service is to be effected abroad and no applicable EU regulation or international treaty governs the mode of transmission, upon the competent public prosecutor as the authority responsible for its onward transmission. Failure to comply with this deadline results in the action being deemed not to have been filed, thereby introducing a strict front-loaded procedural discipline.

In special proceedings, the applicable time limits remain unchanged: 30 days for defendants domiciled in Greece and 60 days where the defendant’s residence is unknown or abroad.

Written procedure and hearing

Within 90 days from the expiry of the service period –120 days in cases involving service abroad – the parties must file their pleadings, service reports, documentary evidence, and powers of attorney, either with the Court Registry or electronically. A further 15 days are afforded for supplementary submissions or rebuttals. Within the same timeframe, the claimant must pay the requisite court fee, calculated as a percentage of the value of the claim.

Notably, the reform introduces a more flexible approach to formal defects. Omissions relating to powers of attorney, court fees, mandatory mediation information sessions (where required), or service reports may be remedied even after the hearing, following an invitation by the presiding judge. This mechanism reflects an attempt to reconcile procedural rigour with substantive adjudication.

Within ten days after the expiry of the period for supplementary submissions, the case file is assigned to the reporting judge. Within the following 30 days, the judge may issue a brief reasoned order dismissing the action as inadmissible or as deemed not filed. The claimant retains the right, within five days and upon payment of a EUR200 fee, to request that the case proceed to the scheduled hearing and that a formal judgment be delivered; the fee is refunded if the initial dismissal is not upheld.

The judge may likewise issue preparatory orders where evidentiary measures – such as witness examination, party interrogation, on-site inspection, or expert opinion – are considered necessary, or where the statement of claim is found to be vague. In the latter instance, the claimant may rectify vagueness by way of supplementary pleadings up to ten days before the hearing.

If such an order is not issued, the case is adjudicated on the scheduled date exclusively on the basis of the written submissions and documentary evidence filed. The parties are neither required to appear nor entitled to seek adjournment, thereby reinforcing the written and pre-structured character of the proceedings.

Issuance of judgments

For the first time in Greek civil procedure, statutory deadlines for the issuance of judgments have been introduced. In non-contentious matters, the judgment must be delivered within four months from submission of the file to the judge. In ordinary proceedings, the court is required to render its decision within eight months from the hearing.

This innovation constitutes a significant normative development, embedding temporal discipline not only at the level of the parties but also within the judicial function itself.

Expansion of lawyers’ authority to issue payment orders

The abolition of the Magistrates’ Courts and the transfer of several of their competences to lawyers constituted a notable step in the redistribution of procedural competences aimed at alleviating court workload and accelerating the adjudication of routine matters. Building on this development, Law 5221/2025 further expanded the role of lawyers by transferring to them the authority to issue payment orders and orders for the return of leased property, competences that had previously fallen within the jurisdiction of the Single-Member Court of First Instance.

This reform relieves the courts from processing many uncontested claims and streamlines procedures that are essentially documentary in nature, while maintaining the necessary safeguards of legality.

Reforms concerning legal remedies

In addition, Law 5221/2025 introduced several procedural amendments designed to accelerate the adjudication of legal remedies.

First, hearings must now take place within a relatively short period following the filing of the relevant application, thereby eliminating the previous possibility for the parties to delay the scheduling of hearings through procedural initiatives. This ensures that appellate proceedings progress within a predictable and reasonable timeframe.

Second, regarding proceedings before the Court of Appeal, the reform narrows the circumstances under which parties may raise arguments for the first time at the appellate stage. Restricting the introduction of arguments that were not previously raised before the court of first instance aims to prevent procedural surprise and reinforce the principle of procedural concentration.

Finally, regarding proceedings before the Supreme Civil Court, the reform reintroduces the rapporteur’s report, a procedural mechanism through which the reporting judge provides a preliminary assessment of the admissibility of the cassation application. This mechanism effectively filters out manifestly inadmissible petitions at an early stage and thereby reduces unnecessary procedural delays.

These measures aim to enhance the efficiency and predictability of appellate review within the Greek civil justice system.

Reforms in enforcement proceedings

Another important component of Law 5221/2025 concerns the reform of enforcement proceedings.

Prior to the reform, the scheduling of hearings for objections against enforcement measures had reached extreme levels of delay, with certain hearings reportedly set for dates as late as 2033 or later. To address this serious undermining of effective judicial protection, the new legislation introduces an electronic rescheduling system designed to bring forward the hearing dates of pending objections against enforcement.

Once fully operational, the system is expected to ensure that such cases are heard within a substantially shorter timeframe, typically within a few months.

By reducing delays at the enforcement stage, the reform aims to strengthen legal certainty and support the smooth functioning of credit and commercial transactions.

Reopening of civil proceedings following ECtHR judgments

A further significant procedural development was introduced by Law 5130/2024, which established a new ground for the reopening of civil proceedings where the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) finds that a domestic judgment was delivered in violation of rights protected under the European Convention on Human Rights.

Although enacted in 2024, the practical application of this reform has only recently begun, with relevant applications now being submitted to the Greek courts.

Under the previous legal framework, findings of violations by the ECtHR generally resulted only in the award of monetary compensation to the applicant. The new mechanism introduces a more substantive form of judicial protection by allowing the domestic judgment that gave rise to the violation to be set aside and the case to be re-examined.

This reform therefore represents an important step towards strengthening the effective domestic implementation of ECtHR judgments and enhancing the practical protection of fundamental rights within the Greek civil justice system.