GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: Dimitris Emvalomenos, Bahas, Gramatidis & Partners
• at the time the product was placed on the market, the defect did not exist; • the defect was caused by the fact that the product was manufactured in such a way that derogation was not permitted (subject to mandatory regulation); or • when the product was placed on the market, the applicable scientific and technological rules at that time prevented the defect from being discovered (the so-called state-of-the- art or development risk defence; Article 6, paragraph 8 of Law 2251). 2.13 The Impact of Regulatory Compliance on Product Liability Claims Adherence to mandatory regulatory requirements may constitute the manufacturer’s defence in product liability cases (Article 6, paragraph 8 of Law 2251; see 2.12 Defences to Product Liabil- ity Claims ). 2.14 Rules for Payment of Costs in Product Liability Claims For costs, the “loser pays” rule applies. Court expenses are “only the court and out-of-court expenses that were necessary for the trial” and, in particular, include: • stamp duties; • judicial revenue stamp duty; • counsels’ minimum fees set by the Lawyers’ Code (Law 4194/2013, as in force); • witnesses’ and experts’ expenses; and • expenses paid for the submission of eviden - tial means, as well as the successful litigants’ travelling expenses in order for them to attend the hearing. However, the expenses that the successful liti - gant recovers are, as per general practice, sub - stantially lower than the actual expenses.
The court offsets the expenses between the liti - gants in the event of a partial win or loss, while it may offset them (and does so, as a rule) between litigants who are relatives or on the basis of complex legal issues involved in the litigation. Offsetting only part of the expenses is also pos - sible when “there was a reasonable doubt on the outcome of the trial” (Articles 173–193 and, in particular, 178–179 of the GCCP). 2.15 Available Funding in Product Liability Claims Generally, and in product liability claims, there are various types of funding, as follows. Public Funding This is regulated by Law 3226/2004 on the provi - sion of legal aid to low-income citizens (imple - menting Directive 2003/8/EC), together with Arti - cles 194–204 of the GCCP. According to Law 3226/2004 (as in force), ben - eficiaries of legal aid are low-income citizens of the EU, as well as of a third state, provided that they reside legally within the EU. For civil and commercial cases, low-income citizens are those with an annual familial income that does not exceed two-thirds of the minimum annual income provided by law. Beneficiaries may also be the victims of certain crimes and citizens suffering 67% disability or more, irrespective of the level of their income. Legal aid is granted on the condition that the case, subject to the discretion of the court, is not deemed unjust or uneconomical. Legal aid in civil and commercial matters entails an exemption from the payment of all or part of the court’s expenses, the submission of a rel - evant petition by the beneficiary, and the nomi - nation of a lawyer, notary and judicial bailiff, in order to represent the beneficiary before the
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