CYPRUS Law and Practice Contributed by: George Middleton, Christoforos Iosif and Chrystalla Hadjigeorgiou, Chryssafinis & Polyviou LLC
Real Estate Assets Typically, a claimant (plaintiff) can only conduct a search at the Land Registry Office only once they have secured a court judgment against the other par - ty, with the aim of registering an encumbrance/memo on properties and subsequently an application to sell the property. Monies Deposited in Banks Banks will not reveal any amounts deposited with them unless ordered to do so by the court. This is usually done after a court judgment, through the filing of a third-party debt order (garnishee order). Shares Searches on companies that aim to establish the com - pany’s shareholders can also be conducted prior to the issuance of a final court judgment. 2.5 Challenging Enforcement of Domestic Judgments Defendants may seek to challenge the enforcement of domestic judgments in one of the ways outlined here. In Default of Appearance The defendant may claim that the proceedings were not properly served on them and therefore seek to set aside the judgment. Delay by the defendant in pursu - ing such an action, or delay in filing the appearance in the first place, are the two major factors taken into consideration by courts examining such applications to set aside judgments issued by default of appear - ance. Judgment by Consent A judgment by consent cannot be easily disputed or set aside. This may, however, be challenged on cer - tain grounds, for example, when the defendant did not authorise their lawyer to accept judgment. In cases where a consensual judgment was secured, a third party may seek to have the judgment set aside on the basis of an argument of collusion/fraud. Stay Pending Appeal Following a hearing of a case on its merits, the unsuc - cessful defendant may seek to stay the execution of the judgment pending appeal. This typically requires that the defendant demonstrate that they will be in
a position to satisfy the judgment if their appeal is unsuccessful. Defendants are usually required to pro - vide bank (or other) guarantees for the amount of the judgment. Such a stay application may either be filed with the district court, or with the appellate court. 2.6 Unenforceable Domestic Judgments There is no type of judgment that cannot be enforced, other than declaratory judgments which by their nature have no enforcement capacity. 2.7 Register of Domestic Judgments There is no register of domestic judgments. However, there is a publicly available database that includes most interim and final judgments. 3. Foreign Judgments 3.1 Legal Issues Concerning Enforcement of Foreign Judgments The legal issues relating to the enforcement of foreign judgments vary according to the jurisdiction in which the judgment was originally issued. EU Judgments As the Republic of Cyprus is a member of the EU, EU judgments can be recognised and enforced under the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. It should be noted that recognition is (near - ly) automatic, as the successful claimant need only present the EU judgment together with the relevant “certificate” from the court that originally issued the judgment for the judgment to be enlisted in Cyprus. The Regulation, by introducing harmonised rules, sim - plifies the process and eliminates the need for any additional declaration of enforceability. Russian Federation Judgments Regarding judgments issued by a court in the Rus - sian Federation, the process is governed by the Trea - ty between the Republic of Cyprus and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on Legal Assistance in Civil and Criminal Matters.
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