The state of justice in Greece was described in bleak terms by Konstantinos Kousoulis, Greece’s representative to the Council of Europe’s Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), who made pointed references to delays, public perception of the judiciary, judicial independence, and more.

According to the EU report for 2025, presented by Kousoulis at a seminar held in the Ministry of Justice auditorium, “the perceived level of judicial independence in Greece is low among the general public (38%) and remains moderate for businesses (49%). Compared to other EU member states, Greece ranks 23rd in perceived independence among the general public and 16th among businesses.”

Kousoulis, in his roles as Director of the Legal Office of the Presidency, national representative to CEPEJ, and former Vice President of the Council of State, spoke in the presence of the Minister of Justice Giorgos Floridis, Deputy Minister Ioannis Bougas, Bank of Greece Governor Yannis Stournaras, and numerous politicians. He referred to EU measurements of judicial independence as perceived by citizens and the business community.

Case Backlogs and Delays

“The efficiency of our judicial system has consistently ranked among the lowest in the EU,” Kousoulis noted. He emphasized that this situation, regarding judicial independence and efficiency, is completely inconsistent with the quality and capabilities of Greek judges, prosecutors, and court staff, but it nonetheless exists and exposes both the Greek judiciary and the country.

According to CEPEJ data, the backlog of cases in the first quarter of 2025 is significant. Pending civil cases in the Athens Court of First Instance number 248,019, while the total across all first-instance courts in Greece reaches 413,279. At the Athens Court of Appeal, pending civil cases are 14,175, with 28,641 nationwide across all appeals courts.

Kousoulis also highlighted the length of time required to resolve cases, stating that “the duration of cases in all jurisdictions and at all levels exceeds the EU average by up to five times.”

• In civil courts, first-instance cases take 771 days (EU average: 247 days), and appeals 673 days (EU: 204 days).
• In criminal courts, first-instance cases take 460 days (EU: 134 days), appeals 694 days (EU: 148 days).
• Administrative courts take 439 days at first instance (EU: 322 days), 703 days at appeals (EU: 288 days), and 1,232 days at the Council of State (EU: 220 days).

For 2023, Greece ranked second to last among EU countries for civil and commercial cases and third to last for administrative cases. Kousoulis noted that, “in terms of efficiency, our judicial system has consistently ranked at the bottom both among EU member states and among the Council of Europe member and observer states.”

Judicial Ratios and Technology Use

Regarding judicial resources, Greece has 37.2 judges per 100,000 inhabitants (Council of Europe average: 21.9), 441.5 lawyers per 100,000 (EU average: 189), and 1.2 court staff per 100,000 (EU: 4.12). Greece ranks last among the 27 EU countries in the use of digital technology in courts and prosecutor offices.

Judge Promotions

In light of upcoming constitutional changes, Kousoulis proposed reforming the structure of the Supreme Judicial Councils responsible for judge promotions. He recommended that these councils become collective bodies with adequate terms (5–6 years), exclusive membership, representation of all judicial levels, and responsibility for planning, goal-setting, accountability, personnel management, judge evaluation, disciplinary law, training of judicial candidates, and continuing education for sitting judges.