Ilias Anagnostopoulos

Practice Areas

Ilias Anagnostopoulos heads the Athens-based law firm Anagnostopoulos focusing on criminal and regulatory risk management and all aspects of business crime defence.

He has appeared as lead counsel in most significant cases in Greece during the past 35 years, including business and financial fraud, procurement fraud, EU Fraud, healthcare fraud, insider dealing, tax and customs fraud, money laundering, asset recovery, anti-competitive practices, corrupt practices, corporate criminal liability, sanctions enforcement, anti-terrorism, product criminal liability, environmental offences, health and safety offences, medical malpractice, art crimes, mutual assistance, extradition and surrender procedures.

He is regularly instructed to advise and represent leading corporates from the energy, defence, aviation, shipping, automotive, construction, financial services, insurance, raw materials, pharmaceuticals, food, health care, tobacco, telecommunications, information technology, travel and leisure, and media sectors, as well as foreign governments and governmental or public organisations.

Ilias is a regular commentator on case law and offers expert opinions in domestic and cross-border proceedings.

Career

Ilias chairs the Hellenic Criminal Bar Association (2013-), a nationwide organisation of criminal practitioners. From 2006 to 2013 he chaired the Criminal Law Committee of the Council of the Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE). He was a member of the Law Commission on the new Greek Criminal Code (2015-2019), which entered into force in July 2019.

Ilias received his education at the School of Law, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (LLM,1978), and the J.W. Goethe University of Frankfurt am Main, Germany (Dr. juris, 1982), with a dissertation on pre-trial detention.

He is a Professor emeritus of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, School of Law, National University of Athens.

Ilias started his academic career at the same School of Law as a Lecturer (1989) and continued as an Assistant Professor (1996), Associate Professor (2009), and Professor (2018).

Professional Memberships

Hellenic Criminal Bar Association (Chair, 2013-); Hellenic Ministry of Justice Experts Committee (2015-2020); High-Legal Council, Bank of Greece (2014-); European Criminal Bar Association (founder member); International Academy of Financial Crime Litigators (fellow); Cambridge Global Forum on Corporate Criminal Liability (Steering Committee); European Criminal Law Academic Network; European Law Institute; International Bar Association; American Bar Association (associate); National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (international); International Society for the Reform of Criminal Law; World Justice Project.

Publications

Ilias has published extensively in Greek, English, and German on matters of criminal law, criminal procedure, European criminal law, criminal justice policy, and fundamental rights.

Some of his publications are:

“Criminal Law in Greece” (with Konstantinos Magliveras), Wolters Kluwer, The Hague/London/Boston, 2nd ed., 2023, 282 pp; "Proportionality issues in European arrest warrant proceedings: Three stories from the field, in: Em. Billis et al, 'The Principle of Proportionality in Crime Control and Criminal Justice', Hart Publishing, 2021, p. 337-358; "One Act, Multiple Prosecutions Unlimited Sanctions?” American Bar Association, 31st National Institute on White Collar Crime, 2017, U11-15; “The right of access to a lawyer in Europe: A long road ahead?”, European Criminal Law Review 2014, p. 3-18; “Criminal justice cooperation in the European Union after the first few ‘steps’: A defence view”, ERA Forum 2014, p. 9-24; “Untersuchungshaft und Verfahrensbeschleunigung: Das Beispiel Griechenlands”, StrafverteidigerForum 2013, p. 453-457; “Contra Socratem”, Onasis Foundation, Athens 25.5.2012, (watch Socrates’ re-trial at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPN7EVtvAto); “Ne bis in idem in der Europäischen Union: Offene Fragen”, Festschrift für Winfried Hassemer, C.F. Müller Verlag, Heidelberg, 2010, p. 1121-1140. For further publications, see https://iag.gr/publications-by-iag-law-firm/

Personal

Ilias lives in Athens with his wife, Persa Lampropoulou, and their sons, Kimon (23) and Aris (22), who are University students.

Languages Spoken

Greek

English

German

French

Work Highlights

- Successfully represented a former Julius Baer banker on charges of aiding and abetting to money laundering in connection with an alleged bribery scheme involving high-ranking officers of the Hellenic Air Force and intermediaries in relation to the purchase of military helicopters (with partner Ioannis Tsakalis).

-Advising Novartis Hellas SA in connection with regulatory, civil, and criminal proceedings involving allegations of corrupt practices to healthcare professionals in Greek public hospitals, false accounting, money laundering, and anti-competitive practices (with partner Alexandros Tsagkalidis).

-Successfully represented the Board of Natura SA, a company managing Kazarma Lake Resort in central Greece on charges of subsidies fraud in relation to the construction of the Resort (with partner Gerasimoula [Jerina] Zapanti).

-Successfully represented a former CEO of Hellas Gold, a subsidiary of Canadian Eldorado Gold, on environmental offences charges in relation to the company’s gold mining facilities in Chalkidiki, Greece (with senior associate Garyfallia Gianni).

-Advising and representing NK, a prominent media producer and publisher, in an ongoing investigation by the Athens Prosecutor for Economic Crimes on allegations of tax fraud and money laundering (with senior associate Alexandros Mezari).

-Successfully represented a US citizen in extradition proceedings following an extradition request by the Kingdom of Bahrain to serve a custodial sentence for embezzlement (with partner Alexandros Tsagkalidis).

-Advising and representing two Greek companies in an investigation conducted by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in cooperation with law enforcement agencies of 14 EU Member States in relation to an alleged complex VAT fraud scheme based on the sale of popular electronic goods (‘Οperation Admiral’) (with associate Constantina Akrida).

Clients

Deutsche Bank

Kering SA

Metlen Energy & Metals

Ferrero SpA

Stellantis Group

Sterner Stenhus AB

TickeOne SpA

Novartis Hellas SA

Antenna Group

OPAP / ALLWYN

Helleniq Energy

Hellas Gold

Mondelez Hellas

Adidas Hellas

Grivalia Hospitality

Arcadia Shipmanagement Co Ltd

Education

Awards