International Relocation Guide 2016: «International Relocation of children law in Greece» by Haroula Constandinidou & Konstantinos Stavropoulos, Practical Law Global, Thomson Reuters – published 2016, 1st edition
Category: Άρθρα (Page 2 of 4)
“Precipitating the award of justice in Greece” by Haroula Constandinidou, International Family Law Journal, December 2015, Issue 4
New regulations are introduced in the Greek Code of Civil Procedure aiming to the precipitation of the award of justice without sacrificing the need of rendering a correct and fair court decision (by virtue of the recent Law 4334/23.7.2015 which will enter into force in Greece on 1 January 2016.
“On the road to same-sex cohabitation agreements” by Haroula Constandinidou, International Family Law Journal, December 2015 edition, Issue 3
New legislation regulating cohabitation agreements in Greece, including same-sex couples.
“Divorce dans le monde – Grèce” by Haroula Constandinidou and Konstantinos Stavropoulos, French legal journal “Actualite’ Juridique Famille”, November 2015 edition, Dalloz
“Fair is foul – A questionnaire on international family law – GREECE” by Haroula Constandinidou and Konstantinos Stavropoulos, during the Taormina – September 2015 IAML Conference
Family Law – Chapter for Greece by Haroula Constandinidou and Konstantinos Stavropoulos, Third edition 2015, A Global Guide from Practical Law, Thomson Reuters
Family law in Greece: overview
Resource type: Country Q&A
Status: Law stated as at 01-May-2015
Jurisdiction: Greece
A Q&A guide to family law in Greece.
The Q&A gives a high level overview of key issues including jurisdiction and conflict of law; pre- and post-nuptial agreements; divorce, nullity, and judicial separation; children; surrogacy and adoption; cohabitation; family dispute resolution; civil partnership/same-sex marriage; and controversial areas and reform.
To compare answers across multiple jurisdictions visit the Family Country Q&A tool.
This Q&A is part of the global guide to Family law. This contribution, in its original form, first appeared in Family Law (2nd edition), General Editor James Stewart of Penningtons Manches LLP. Family Law was published in association with the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.
Contents
Jurisdiction and conflict of law, Regulatory framework, Jurisdiction, Domicile and habitual residence, Conflict of law, Pre- and post-nuptial agreements, Validity of pre- and post-nuptial agreements, Divorce, nullity and judicial separation, Recognition of foreign marriages/divorces, Divorce, Finances/capital and property, Finances/maintenance, Child maintenance, Reciprocal enforcement of financial orders, Financial relief after foreign divorce proceedings, Children, Custody/parental responsibility, International abduction, Leave to remove/applications to take a child out of the jurisdiction, Surrogacy and adoption, Surrogacy agreements, Adoption, Cohabitation, Family dispute resolution, Mediation, collaborative law and arbitration, Civil partnership/same-sex marriage, Controversial areas and reform
Contributor profiles
Haroula Constandinidou-Stavropoulou, Senior Partner
Konstantinos Stavropoulos, Partner
Judicial Mediation was introduced in Greece by Law 4055/2012 on “Due Process and reasonable duration thereof” adding article 214B in the Greek Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”). Pursuant to this article, private law disputes can -if the parties mutually agree- be resolved alternatively by use of Judicial Mediation at any stage of or before the Litigation action.
Judicial Mediation could serve both parties’ best interests as it is quick and cost effective. Further, the Minute constitutes an enforceable title. Judicial Mediation will also be of benefit to the parties because it is conducted in flexible and simple terms and it is confidential.
Law 4055/2012 on “Due Process and reasonable duration thereof” has amended certain provisions of the Greek Civil Code, among them article 1441 on divorce by mutual consent, simplifying the relevant procedure.
So now the consensual divorce is granted if the marriage has lasted for a minimum of six months before the spouses sign a written agreement for the dissolution of the marriage. In the case of minor children, a written agreement with regard to custody and communication must be signed as well (child maintenance can be included in the agreement as well, but it is not mandatory).
The above written agreement by the spouses is ratified by the court. The court judgment in relation to custody, communication and child maintenance constitutes an enforceable order.
The article presents analytically the “Chapter for Greece” of Family Law and has the following structure in particular:
- Sources of Law
- Jurisdiction
- Domicile and Habitual Residence
- Conflict of Law/Applicable law
- Validity of Pre and Post Nuptial Agreements
- Recognition of foreign Marriages/Divorces
- Divorce
- Finances/Capital, Property/Maintenance /Child Maintenance / Reciprocal enforcement of financial orders: Financial relief after Foreign divorce proceedings
- International Abduction / Legal Aid in application through the Central Authority Leave to Remove/Applications to take a child out of the jurisdiction
- Controversial areas/rapidly developing areas of law
- Cohabitation Civil Partnership/Same Sex Marriage
Even though the number of married couples in Greece is one of the highest in the EU, the number of cohabiting partners is increasing as many couples wish a permanent cohabitation but in a more loose way than that established by marriage. Statistics have shown that the number of women in Greece at the age of 18-24 that chose to cohabit without getting married has tripled in the past thirty years (according to a research of the National Center of Social Research). In the past, the Greek society as well as the law disapproved of cohabitations without marriage. The main argument was that this would undermine the institution of marriage. Today this disapproval has been limited or even disappeared and on 26/11/2008 law 3719/2008 “reforms for the family, the child, the society and other provisions” was published in the Government Gazette and came into force. This way Greece, a country with one of the highest marriage rates in the E.U., follows the non compulsory to the Member States decision of the European Court of Human Rights, according to which, cohabitation falls within the scope of article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights that protects private and family life. Despite the fact that, as aforementioned, Greece is a country with one of the highest marriage rates in the E.U., the increasing number of cohabitants and the social acceptance of cohabitation, made the legislative reform necessary. Although it cannot be said that the reforms introduced by law 3719/2008 constitute a major breakthrough in Greece’s family law and solve serious social problems such as cohabitation between same sex couples, they undoubtedly offer a wider spectrum of options to men and women and safeguard the rights of unmarried mothers and children born out of wedlock.
