GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: John Kyriakides, Vicky Kriketou, Angeliki Stryftou and Konstantinos Lygkonis, Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm
• the matters are of a kind that the court must con- sider ex officio or may be raised at any stage of the proceedings; • the appellate court finds that the issues could not be raised earlier for justified reasons — this also applies to the objection of abuse of rights; • the claims emerged for the first time subsequently; and • the claims are proven in writing or through an in- court confession of the opposing party. 10.5 Court-Imposed Conditions on Granting an Appeal The court is not entitled to impose any conditions on the granting of an appeal. 10.6 Powers of the Appellate Court After an Appeal Hearing The appellate court examines the admissibility of the appeal and evaluates its grounds. If the appeal is found to be both admissible and well-founded, the court renders a decision on the merits. 11. Costs 11.1 Responsibility for Paying the Costs of Litigation As a general rule, the losing party bears the costs of the proceedings, including the opponent’s lawyers’ fees, but only up to the statutory minimum — any excess amounts agreed privately between lawyers and clients are non-recoverable. The main expenses in civil proceedings include court fees and lawyers’ fees, both of which are governed by statute. In practice, however, legal fees are gener- ally subject to agreement between lawyer and client, provided that the agreed amount does not fall below the statutory minimum. Court-related fees typically include:
solely in respect of the costs of proceedings, unless it also concerns the merits of the case. 11.2 Factors Considered When Awarding Costs Each party may include in its pleadings, submitted at the first hearing before the court, a list of expenses for which reimbursement is sought. If such a list has been submitted and the court renders a final decision on all or part of the principal or inci- dental action, the court must include in its judgment a provision on the obligation to pay the costs, specifying the amount awarded. If no list of expenses has been filed, but a request for costs has been made, the court shall nevertheless proceed to award costs on the basis of its assessment and may, where appropriate, offset them between the parties. The allocation of litigation costs falls within the court’s discretion, including whether they are awarded in full or in part and whether they should be borne by the defeated party. 11.3 Interest Awarded on Costs Upon issuance of the judgment, interest accrues on the entire amount awarded, including costs, and is calculated at the applicable statutory rate until full payment. 12. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) 12.1 Views of ADR Within the Country In Greece, most disputes are resolved through court litigation or direct negotiations between the parties, while arbitration and mediation remain less frequent- ly used methods of dispute resolution. Neverthe- less, in line with prevailing international trends, Law 4640/2019 has shifted mediation in Greece from a purely voluntary and informal mechanism into a more regulated process aimed at enhancing efficiency and conserving judicial resources.
• stamp duties; and • proceedings fees.
The above may be recovered if the claimant prevails. An appeal or other legal remedy may not be brought
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