GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: Ilias G. Anagnostopoulos and Padelis V. Bratis, ANAGNOSTOPOULOS
• in relation to third countries and non-EU-based litigants, judicial assistance is regulated by bilateral or multilateral international treaties (eg, the Hague Convention of 1965). For practical reasons, European or international claim - ants who wish to acquire party status in Greek civil or criminal proceedings are advised to (also) appoint a lawyer based within the jurisdiction of the competent domestic court. Extraterritorial Effect of Greek Criminal Law Apart from offences committed within national terri - tory, Greek criminal law has an extraterritorial effect in the following cases: • felonies or misdemeanours committed by nationals abroad, under the condition of dual criminality (Arti - cle 6 GCC – principle of active personality); • felonies or misdemeanours committed abroad against nationals, state entities or other entities with their seat in Greece abroad, under the condi - tion of dual criminality (Article 7 GCC – principle of passive personality); and • certain offences prescribed in Article 8 GCC, regardless of the prerequisite of dual criminality according to the principle of universal jurisdiction (eg, terrorism, human trafficking, piracy, drug traf - ficking, etc). 4.2 Service of Proceedings out of the Jurisdiction Depending on the involved jurisdictions (eg, EU mem - ber states or third countries), different sets of rules may apply for such proceedings. Please see also 4.1 Joining Overseas Parties to Fraud Claims .
cles 904 and 918 GCCivP). Once the order is served, enforcement actions may take place after three work - ing days have passed (Article 926 GCCivP). Enforcement actions include garnishment (confisca - tion) of the defendant’s assets and real estate property and/or auction of said assets and property. Enforcement of Criminal Judgments The enforcement of criminal judgments lies with the competent prosecuting authorities of the court that issued said judgment. As a rule, only final criminal judgments are enforceable (Article 545 GCCP). How - ever, if a defendant has been convicted of a felony or even a serious misdemeanour, the first-instance court may rule that its judgment be directly enforced, not - withstanding the submission of an appeal against it (Article 497 GCCP). 5.2 Enforcement of Foreign Judgments The process for the enforcement of foreign civil and criminal judgments within the Greek jurisdiction is, as a rule, prescribed by relevant bilateral treaties and international conventions. Such proceedings are how - ever significantly simplified among EU member states, whereby the principle of mutual recognition of judicial decisions applies. In this case, the enforcement of judgments in civil and criminal matters entails the direct collaboration of the competent authorities in the involved jurisdictions, while the above process is facilitated by special EU legislation (eg, EU Directives Brussels I and II on the enforcement of civil judgments, the European Supervi - sion Order on the enforcement of criminal judgments, etc). Please see also 4.2 Service of Proceedings out of the Jurisdiction . 6. Privileges 6.1 Invoking the Privilege Against Self- Incrimination Criminal Proceedings The right to silence and to not incriminate oneself is enshrined in Article 104 GCCP. In accordance with this provision, the exercise of said right by the suspect or accused of a criminal offence shall not be interpreted
5. Enforcement 5.1 Methods of Enforcement Enforcement of Civil Judgments
Final judgments of first-instance courts that have been issued as provisionally enforceable may be immedi - ately enforced. A certified copy of the enforcement order, which is provided by the presiding judge of the court that issued the relevant judgment, is required in order to initiate the enforcement procedure (Arti -
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