CYPRUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Kyriacos Scordis, Alexandros Gavrielides, Chara Pieri and Demetris Yiannakou, Scordis, Papapetrou & Co LLC
9. Damages and Judgment 9.1 Awards Available to the Successful Litigant The Cypriot courts have the power to grant a wide range of remedies at the full trial stage including an award of damages, a declaratory judgment as to the rights and obligations of the parties and mandatory or prohibitive injunctions. The available remedies depend on the nature of the claim and the facts of the particular case. For example, in claims based on breach of a contract for the sale of land, or in other cases where an award for damages would not be an adequate remedy, an order for specific perfor- mance of the relevant contract may be granted. 9.2 Rules Regarding Damages The Cypriot courts have wide discretion to award damages and there are no legislative provisions limiting maximum damages. Punitive damages may only be awarded in specific cases, namely: • where there is oppressive and unconstitu- tional conduct by a public servant; • where the defendant aims to take advantage of the wrongful act in order to make a profit; or • where there is a specific legislative provision permitting the award of punitive damages. The general rule is that the aim of damages is to compensate the claimant for loss and damage actually suffered. The common law rules regard- ing causation and remoteness of damage apply. 9.3 Pre-judgment and Post-judgment Interest As a general rule, the interest awarded by the court begins to accrue from the date of filing of the claim unless there is an agreement between the parties regarding the payment of interest
sary. Court approval/leave is required in order for a claim served on the defendant(s) to be dis- continued without prejudice (ie, with reservation of the right to file a new claim in the future with respect to the same matters). Court approval/ leave is also required in cases where minors or
their property rights are affected. 8.2 Settlement of Lawsuits and Confidentiality
The settlement of a lawsuit can remain confiden- tial as there is no obligation to inform the court of the terms of the settlement or submit a copy of the settlement agreement. Only the fact that a settlement has been achieved is required to be declared. 8.3 Enforcement of Settlement Agreements Settlement agreements can be enforced in the same manner as all other contracts, ie, by fil- ing an action in the event of breach. In some cases, the settlement agreement provides for the issuance of a judgment or order of the court by consent on specific terms. In such cases, it may be possible to enforce the provisions of the settlement agreement reflected in the relevant judgment or order using the available mecha- nisms for the enforcement of court judgments. 8.4 Setting Aside Settlement Agreements A settlement agreement may be set aside on the same grounds as any other contract, ie, because of lack of capacity of any of the parties, mutual mistake, misrepresentation, fraud, duress and undue influence.
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