GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: Ilias G. Anagnostopoulos and Padelis V. Bratis, ANAGNOSTOPOULOS
may also be achieved through confiscation (Arti - cles 260 et seq GCCP). Moreover, Article 245 paragraph 2 GCCP pro - vides that, upon suspected commission of a crime, and given that there is an imminent threat of loss of evidence, the competent investigative officers are entitled to perform all necessary acts in order to determine the offence and its perpe - trator, even without prior notice to the prosecu - tor. New legislation was recently passed in Greece regarding the management of assets that have been frozen or seized as proceeds of criminal acts (Law 5042/2023). Such legislation, which mainly derives from relevant EU Directives, is aimed at preserving and utilising proceeds of criminal offences for public purposes, including redress for victims. 2.3 Obtaining Disclosure of Documents and Evidence From Third Parties Civil Proceedings A litigant may file an application with the court for the presentation of a specific document by the opposing party or a third party (Article 450 et seq GCCivP). The party filing the application for the presentation of the document should expressly specify, in its application, the docu - ment for which disclosure is sought. An order granting or dismissing the application is issued by the competent court. Criminal Proceedings Please see 2.1 Disclosure of Defendants’ Assets . Rules of Evidence Lawfully obtained evidence may constitute means of proof and may be used as such before Greek courts in civil and criminal proceedings.
The evaluation of evidence is made freely by the court, but the final ruling needs to be sufficiently reasoned. 2.4 Procedural Orders Provisional orders may be issued ex parte, even without the service of a notice to the oppos - ing litigant (Article 691A paragraph 2 GCCivP). Please see also 1.7 Prevention of Defendants Dissipating or Secreting Assets . 2.5 Criminal Redress Fraud Victim as a Party to Criminal Proceedings The victim of a criminal offence (including a fraud victim) is entitled to acquire plaintiff status in criminal proceedings by making a declaration in support of the charges against the accused. Such a declaration can be submitted as a written statement during the pretrial stages or before the criminal court, until the beginning of the exami - nation of evidence (ie, usually before the calling of the first witness). Articles 63–68 in conjunction with Articles 82–88 GCCP comprise the relevant legal framework. Moreover, after issuing its judgment on the charges brought, the criminal court has the power to order the return of seized assets to the victim of fraud or other related offences. The participation of the (fraud) victim in crimi - nal proceedings aims at the conviction of the accused, with no possibility of the filing of pri - vate claims for compensation that arise from the same wrongful act. Nonetheless, the victim may pursue civil claims before civil courts. Parallel Criminal and Civil Proceedings When a civil lawsuit is intertwined with criminal claims, which are to be adjudicated by the com - petent criminal court, it is usual practice (though
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