GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: Ilias G. Anagnostopoulos and Padelis V. Bratis, ANAGNOSTOPOULOS
6.2 Undermining the Privilege Over Communications Exempt From Discovery or Disclosure The process of “discovery” or “disclosure” is not established under Greek civil law, though certain categories of privileged information, communi - cations and documents are especially recog - nised throughout criminal proceedings. Attorney-Client Privilege Attorney-client privilege is well established with - in the Greek legal system and covers a broad range of data (eg, electronic correspondence, written memos, oral communications, etc) that is treated as confidential. Attorney-client privi - lege can be invoked in all types of procedures, whether criminal, administrative or civil, without making a distinction between natural and legal persons as to the identification of the client. Sources of this privilege are to be found in: • the Lawyers’ Code (Law 4194/2013); • the GCC; • the GCCP; and • the GCCivP. Professional Privilege Except for lawyers, disclosure of privileged infor - mation may be denied by certain professionals, such as doctors, clerics, pharmacists, etc (Arti - cle 212 GCCP). Moreover, pursuant to Articles 263 and 264 GCCP, seizure of privileged documents in the possession of the above-mentioned profession - als is prohibited. Undermining Privileges In exceptional cases, prosecuting authorities may have broad powers for the collection of evi - dence and information, thus not being bound
In this case, the enforcement of judgments in civil and criminal matters entails the direct col - laboration 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 Supervision 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 one - self is enshrined in Article 104 GCCP. In accord - ance with this provision, the exercise of said right by the suspect or accused of a criminal offence shall not be interpreted as evidence of guilt; the exercise of said right does not preclude further collection of evidence by the investigative authorities. The right to silence and to not incriminate one - self is reflected in a number of other provisions of the GCCP as well (eg, Article 273, which refers to the interrogation of the defendant). Civil Proceedings Although the defendant cannot be obliged to adduce evidence or disclose information (please see also 2.1 Disclosure of Defendants’ Assets ), the right to silence does not apply to civil pro - ceedings. If the defendant does not attend the trial to rebut the plaintiff’s claims, the latter’s allegations will be accepted as true (Article 271 GCCivP).
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