CYPRUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Kyriacos Scordis, Alexandros Gavrielides, Chara Pieri and Demetris Yiannakou, Scordis, Papapetrou & Co LLC
8. Settlement 8.1 Court Approval
The transcripts of hearings are only available to the parties to the action, but a third party may apply to the court for permission to obtain a copy of such tran- scripts. Such permission will be granted only if the applicant demonstrates a legitimate interest in obtain- ing the transcripts. 7.7 Level of Intervention by a Judge Under the CPR, a judge has wide discretion to regu- late the proceedings before them as they consider appropriate and in the interest of justice. Indeed, one of the purposes of the new CPR was to enable judges to take a more active role in the proceedings. Pursuant to the CPR, judges have the power to give directions in relation to a range of issues concerning the way in which the trial is conducted, including the number of witnesses, the matters in relation to which oral evidence is required and the time available for cross-examination. Generally, rulings on objections to the admissibility of documentary or oral evidence are given by the judge at the hearing unless a particularly complex legal issue is raised. Judgments on interim applications as well as final judgments are usually reserved and delivered at a later date. 7.8 General Timeframes for Proceedings The length of time between the commencement of civil proceedings and trial varies considerably, depending, inter alia, on the nature of the proceedings, the District Court in which the proceedings are commenced, and the workload of the particular judge assigned to the case. The level of backlogs in litigious civil and com- mercial cases is relatively high, often resulting in seri- ous delays in case processing. On average, the period between the commencement of civil proceedings and trial at first instance is currently around five years. However, the introduction of the new CPR, the estab- lishment of new specialised courts, the implementa- tion of measures to address “backlog” cases, and the introduction of an electronic filing and case manage- ment system are expected to gradually lead to a sig- nificant reduction in the length of time between the commencement of proceedings and trial.
Court approval is generally not required to settle a civil claim. However, there are specific circumstances in which court approval/leave is necessary. Court approval/leave is required in order for a claim served on the defendant(s) to be discontinued without preju- dice (ie, with reservation of the right to file a new claim in the future with respect to the same matters). Court approval/leave is also required in cases where minors or their property rights are affected. 8.2 Settlement of Lawsuits and Confidentiality The settlement of a lawsuit can remain confidential, as there is no obligation to inform the court of its terms or to submit a copy of the settlement agreement. Only the fact that a settlement has been achieved is required to be declared. 8.3 Enforcement of Settlement Agreements Settlement agreements can be enforced in the same manner as all other contracts, ie, by filing an action in the event of breach. In some cases, the settlement agreement provides for the issuance of a judgment or order of the court by consent on specific terms. In such cases, it may be possible to enforce the provi- sions of the settlement agreement reflected in the rel- evant judgment or order through the available mecha- nisms for enforcing court judgments. 8.4 Setting Aside Settlement Agreements A settlement agreement may be set aside on the same grounds as any other contract, ie, because of lack of capacity of any of the parties, mutual mistake, misrep- resentation, fraud, duress and undue influence. 9. Damages and Judgment 9.1 Awards Available to the Successful Litigant The Cypriot courts have the power to grant a wide range of remedies at the full trial stage, including an award of damages, a declaratory judgment as to the rights and obligations of the parties and mandatory or prohibitive injunctions. The available remedies depend on the nature of the claim and the facts of the particu-
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