Civil Procedure Reforms Introduced by Law 5221/2025

September 2025

John Kyriakides, Managing Partner, Vasiliki (Vicky) Kriketou, Partner, and Konstantinos Lygkonis, Associate

Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm

On 28 July 2025, Law 5221/2025 was published in the Government Gazette (Issue A’ 133/28.07.2025). The Law introduces key reforms to the Civil Procedure Code (“CPC“), aimed at accelerating the delivery of justice in the Greek courts through targeted legislative measures. Most of its provisions will enter into force on January 1, 2026. The key changes introduced by the Law are as follows:

I. Filing of Lawsuits

Since the introduction of Law 4335/2015, two rules have applied regarding the legal consequence of improper service of a lawsuit:

• In ordinary proceedings, failure to serve or late service meant that the lawsuit was deemed not filed.
• In special proceedings, the defendant’s appearance without raising an objection cured the defect.

Under the new Article 215 para. 2 CPC, a lawsuit must be served within a specific deadline; otherwise, it is deemed not filed. With the removal of the phrase “in the case of Article 237”, this consequence now applies to all remedies, including special proceedings, thereby abolishing the previous rule that such defects could be cured.

II. Service of Lawsuits

With respect to the time limits for service of lawsuits (and summonses), the new provision maintains two distinct regimes:

1. Ordinary proceedings: Unlike the previous regime, which differentiated the service period depending on the defendant’s residence, the new provision establishes a uniform 30-day period applying to all defendants, irrespective of their place of residence.
2. Special proceedings: The existing summons periods remain unchanged—30 days for defendants domiciled in Greece and 60 days for those of unknown residence or residing abroad.

III. Ordinary Proceedings

• Setting of Hearing Date: In contrast to the previous regime, a hearing date is now set upon the filing of the lawsuit – 6 to 7 months from filing, or 9 to 10 months in cases where service must be effected abroad. (Article 215 para. 1 CPC).
• Shortened Time Limits for Filing Incidental Lawsuits, Counterclaims, Interventions, Third-Party Notices and Declarations: These procedural time limits now begin from the expiration of the service period of the lawsuit, rather than from the date of its filing (Article 238 para. 1 CPC).
• Mediation: Under the new provisions, the mediation process, which precedes the closing of the case files, does not suspend the time limits for the submission of briefs set out in Articles 237–238 CPC. If, during the pendency of the lawsuit and before the submission of briefs, the parties sign an agreement to enter into voluntary mediation, the mediator who signs the minutes notifies the court, and the case is removed from the docket (Article 237 para. 1 CPC).
• Orders on Procedural Inadmissibility: The designated judges issue an order within 30 days from being assigned the case if (a) the lawsuit must be dismissed as inadmissible, or (b) the lawsuit is deemed not filed. The plaintiff may contest the order within 5 days of its issuance, requesting that the case be heard on the scheduled hearing date and that a judgment be issued. In such case, the plaintiff must pay a fee EUR 200 no later than the hearing; the fee is refunded if the order is not upheld by the judgment (Article 237 paras. 3–4 CPC).
• Judicial Indication of Vagueness: If the lawsuit is affected by factual vagueness, the judge may indicate this in the order under Article 236 CPC. The plaintiff may then cure the vagueness by submitting an addendum to the briefs up to 10 days before the hearing (Article 237 para. 3 CPC).
• Court Stamp: The court stamp must be filed no later than the time of the supplemental answer–rebuttal. Under the new Article 227 CPC, failure to file it constitutes a formal omission, which may be remedied even after the hearing through judicial notice to the plaintiff. (Articles 227 para.1 and 237 para. 2 CPC).
• Designation of Judge (or Court Composition): The judge assigned to the case, or, in the case of the Multi-Member Court of First Instance, the composition of the court, must be designated within 10 days from the expiration of the deadline for the supplemental answer–rebuttal (Article 237 para. 2 CPC).

IV. Small Claims Proceedings

Small Claims Proceedings have been amended, raising the monetary threshold to EUR 8,000 and introducing the “fictitious hearing” (a hearing treated as having taken place without oral argument, decided on written submissions) in adversary proceedings. Moreover, the 30-day service period for defendants of unknown residence or residing abroad has been abolished, and a single uniform period of 10 days – applicable only to defendants domiciled in Greece—now applies to all defendants (Articles 466 et seq. CPC).

V. Payment and Lease-Return Orders

The competence to issue payment orders and lease-return orders is now transferred from the courts to practicing lawyers. The scope of lease-return orders has also been expanded and may now be granted not only for unpaid rent but also when a tenant unlawfully retains the leasehold after lease termination. A transitional period of 6 months is provided to allow the tenant to relocate as smoothly as possible (Articles 625 & 637 CPC).

VI. Establishment of Time Limits for Issuing Judgments

Explicit time limits have been introduced for the issuance of judgments, varying by type of procedure:

• 4 months for non-contentious jurisdiction cases
• 8 months for ordinary and special proceedings

If these deadlines are exceeded, the judge must issue the judgment within one additional month. Should this further period also lapse without issuance, the judge shall return the case file, which shall then be withdrawn by order of the presiding judge or the President of the Court’s three-member Administrative Council (Article 307 CPC).

VII. Legal Remedies

• Competent Court and Setting of Hearing Date: Legal remedies must be filed directly before the court competent for the specific remedy, instead of the court that issued the contested judgment. For the legal remedies of opposition to a default judgment, appeal, and rehearing, a hearing date is set immediately, within a maximum period of 5 months from the filing of the remedy (Article 495 CPC).
• Amendment of Time Limits for Legal Remedies: The time limit for filing an appeal or a petition for cassation is reduced from 2 years to 1 year in cases where the contested court decision has not been served (Articles 518 and 564 para. 3 CPC).
• Five-Day Time Limit for Rebuttals: Rebuttals to pleadings in appeals, cassation, and rehearing proceedings must be filed within 5 days (Articles 524, 548, and 570 CPC).
• Page Limits in Cassation Proceedings: A page limit is established for pleadings in cassation proceedings. If these limits are substantially exceeded, the Court Secretariat notifies the Presiding Judge of the competent Chamber or of the Plenary. By order issued immediately after the filing and scheduling of the hearing, the Presiding Judge calls upon the attorney of record to reduce the length of the pleading to the prescribed page limits within a period not exceeding one month (Article 566 CPC).

VIII. Electronic Case File

The Integrated System of Civil and Criminal Justice Case Management (OSDDY-PP) now establishes an electronic case file in every proceeding. The file consolidates all essential documents of the litigation—pleadings, briefs, exhibits, affidavits, court fees, mediation records, expert reports, and judicial decisions—into a single digital environment accessible to the parties and the court (Article 119 para. 5 CPC).

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September 2025

John Kyriakides, Managing Partner, Vasiliki (Vicky) Kriketou, Partner, and Konstantinos Lygkonis, Associate

Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm

On 28 July 2025, Law 5221/2025 was published in the Government Gazette (Issue A’ 133/28.07.2025). The Law introduces key reforms to the Civil Procedure Code (“CPC“), aimed at accelerating the delivery of justice in the Greek courts through targeted legislative measures. Most of its provisions will enter into force on January 1, 2026. The key changes introduced by the Law are as follows:

I. Filing of Lawsuits

Since the introduction of Law 4335/2015, two rules have applied regarding the legal consequence of improper service of a lawsuit:

• In ordinary proceedings, failure to serve or late service meant that the lawsuit was deemed not filed.
• In special proceedings, the defendant’s appearance without raising an objection cured the defect.

Under the new Article 215 para. 2 CPC, a lawsuit must be served within a specific deadline; otherwise, it is deemed not filed. With the removal of the phrase “in the case of Article 237”, this consequence now applies to all remedies, including special proceedings, thereby abolishing the previous rule that such defects could be cured.

II. Service of Lawsuits

With respect to the time limits for service of lawsuits (and summonses), the new provision maintains two distinct regimes:

1. Ordinary proceedings: Unlike the previous regime, which differentiated the service period depending on the defendant’s residence, the new provision establishes a uniform 30-day period applying to all defendants, irrespective of their place of residence.
2. Special proceedings: The existing summons periods remain unchanged—30 days for defendants domiciled in Greece and 60 days for those of unknown residence or residing abroad.

III. Ordinary Proceedings

• Setting of Hearing Date: In contrast to the previous regime, a hearing date is now set upon the filing of the lawsuit – 6 to 7 months from filing, or 9 to 10 months in cases where service must be effected abroad. (Article 215 para. 1 CPC).
• Shortened Time Limits for Filing Incidental Lawsuits, Counterclaims, Interventions, Third-Party Notices and Declarations: These procedural time limits now begin from the expiration of the service period of the lawsuit, rather than from the date of its filing (Article 238 para. 1 CPC).
• Mediation: Under the new provisions, the mediation process, which precedes the closing of the case files, does not suspend the time limits for the submission of briefs set out in Articles 237–238 CPC. If, during the pendency of the lawsuit and before the submission of briefs, the parties sign an agreement to enter into voluntary mediation, the mediator who signs the minutes notifies the court, and the case is removed from the docket (Article 237 para. 1 CPC).
• Orders on Procedural Inadmissibility: The designated judges issue an order within 30 days from being assigned the case if (a) the lawsuit must be dismissed as inadmissible, or (b) the lawsuit is deemed not filed. The plaintiff may contest the order within 5 days of its issuance, requesting that the case be heard on the scheduled hearing date and that a judgment be issued. In such case, the plaintiff must pay a fee EUR 200 no later than the hearing; the fee is refunded if the order is not upheld by the judgment (Article 237 paras. 3–4 CPC).
• Judicial Indication of Vagueness: If the lawsuit is affected by factual vagueness, the judge may indicate this in the order under Article 236 CPC. The plaintiff may then cure the vagueness by submitting an addendum to the briefs up to 10 days before the hearing (Article 237 para. 3 CPC).
• Court Stamp: The court stamp must be filed no later than the time of the supplemental answer–rebuttal. Under the new Article 227 CPC, failure to file it constitutes a formal omission, which may be remedied even after the hearing through judicial notice to the plaintiff. (Articles 227 para.1 and 237 para. 2 CPC).
• Designation of Judge (or Court Composition): The judge assigned to the case, or, in the case of the Multi-Member Court of First Instance, the composition of the court, must be designated within 10 days from the expiration of the deadline for the supplemental answer–rebuttal (Article 237 para. 2 CPC).

IV. Small Claims Proceedings

Small Claims Proceedings have been amended, raising the monetary threshold to EUR 8,000 and introducing the “fictitious hearing” (a hearing treated as having taken place without oral argument, decided on written submissions) in adversary proceedings. Moreover, the 30-day service period for defendants of unknown residence or residing abroad has been abolished, and a single uniform period of 10 days – applicable only to defendants domiciled in Greece—now applies to all defendants (Articles 466 et seq. CPC).

V. Payment and Lease-Return Orders

The competence to issue payment orders and lease-return orders is now transferred from the courts to practicing lawyers. The scope of lease-return orders has also been expanded and may now be granted not only for unpaid rent but also when a tenant unlawfully retains the leasehold after lease termination. A transitional period of 6 months is provided to allow the tenant to relocate as smoothly as possible (Articles 625 & 637 CPC).

VI. Establishment of Time Limits for Issuing Judgments

Explicit time limits have been introduced for the issuance of judgments, varying by type of procedure:

• 4 months for non-contentious jurisdiction cases
• 8 months for ordinary and special proceedings

If these deadlines are exceeded, the judge must issue the judgment within one additional month. Should this further period also lapse without issuance, the judge shall return the case file, which shall then be withdrawn by order of the presiding judge or the President of the Court’s three-member Administrative Council (Article 307 CPC).

VII. Legal Remedies

• Competent Court and Setting of Hearing Date: Legal remedies must be filed directly before the court competent for the specific remedy, instead of the court that issued the contested judgment. For the legal remedies of opposition to a default judgment, appeal, and rehearing, a hearing date is set immediately, within a maximum period of 5 months from the filing of the remedy (Article 495 CPC).
• Amendment of Time Limits for Legal Remedies: The time limit for filing an appeal or a petition for cassation is reduced from 2 years to 1 year in cases where the contested court decision has not been served (Articles 518 and 564 para. 3 CPC).
• Five-Day Time Limit for Rebuttals: Rebuttals to pleadings in appeals, cassation, and rehearing proceedings must be filed within 5 days (Articles 524, 548, and 570 CPC).
• Page Limits in Cassation Proceedings: A page limit is established for pleadings in cassation proceedings. If these limits are substantially exceeded, the Court Secretariat notifies the Presiding Judge of the competent Chamber or of the Plenary. By order issued immediately after the filing and scheduling of the hearing, the Presiding Judge calls upon the attorney of record to reduce the length of the pleading to the prescribed page limits within a period not exceeding one month (Article 566 CPC).

VIII. Electronic Case File

The Integrated System of Civil and Criminal Justice Case Management (OSDDY-PP) now establishes an electronic case file in every proceeding. The file consolidates all essential documents of the litigation—pleadings, briefs, exhibits, affidavits, court fees, mediation records, expert reports, and judicial decisions—into a single digital environment accessible to the parties and the court (Article 119 para. 5 CPC).