In Greece, general provisions of criminal procedure apply to the investigation and prosecution of intellectual property crimes. These crimes fall under the general rules of jurisdiction.
Verified in November 2023
Country fiches: Greece
National legislation
National legislation on intellectual property crimes
Copyright violations
Article 66 of Law 2121/1993 on Copyright, Related Rights and Cultural Matters
Law 2121/1993 on Copyright, Related Rights and Cultural Matters:
Law 2121/1993 - ΟΡΓΑΝΙΣΜΟΣ ΠΝΕΥΜΑΤΙΚΗΣ ΙΔΙΟΚΤΗΣΙΑΣ (opi.gr)
Law 2121/1993 - ΟΡΓΑΝΙΣΜΟΣ ΠΝΕΥΜΑΤΙΚΗΣ ΙΔΙΟΚΤΗΣΙΑΣ (opi.gr)
Counterfeiting of trademark
Article 45 of Law 4679/2020 on Trademarks
Law 4679/2020 on Trademarks (not updated) WIPO Lex
Patent violations
Only false marking of patents is criminalised under article 17(7) of Law 1733/1987
Industrial design violations
Violations of industrial designs are not a criminal offence under Greek law. Violations of industrial design rights are dealt with by Civil Law.
Violations of geographical indications of origin
No specific penal sanctions for infringements of geographical indications of origin are foreseen in national law. Geographical indications of origin may be protected indirectly by articles 23 – 27 of Law No 4235/2014
Violations of plant variety rights
Violations of plant variety rights do not constitute a criminal offence under national law in Greece.
Trade Secrets violations
Violations of trade secrets are mostly dealt with by civil courts.
National contacts
National contacts
Law Enforcement Agencies
IP crime investigation falls under the competence of the Economic Crime Directorate of the Hellenic Police.
There are no units specialised in investigating IP crimes.
Helenic Police - Economic Crime Directorate
+30 2106476431
173 Alexandras Ave., P.C. 115 22, Athens
Prosecution
The prosecution of IP crimes falls under the competence of the general prosecution jurisdiction.
Prosecutor Offices consist of the Prosecutor’s Office at the Supreme Court, the Prosecutor’s Office at the Court of Appeals and the Public Prosecutor’s Offices (at the first instance courts).
Prosecutor Offices do not have units specialised in prosecuting IP crimes.
Prosecutor’s Office at the Supreme Court
121 Alexandras Avenue, Athens
List of contact details: access here
Public Prosecutor Offices
List of Public Prosecutor Offices and their contact details: access here
Judiciary
In Greece, there are no specialised courts on IP crime. This type of crime falls under the general court system.
The general courts are organised in a three-tier system:
- Magistrate Courts;
- Courts of Appeal; and
- The Supreme Court.
Judicial libraries
Judicial libraries
ΑΡΕIΟΣ ΠAΓΟΣ (SUPREME COURT)
Public and free database. No registration is required.
All criminal case judgments (since 2017) from:
- Supreme Court (3rd instance)
NOMOS
Private database. Payment and registration required.
Judgments (since 1980) from:
- all courts in Greece
Other available resources:
- summaries from legal journals (articles, studies)
- access to the EU database CELEX
- access to the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union
QUALEX
Private database. Payment and registration required.
Selected judgments (since 1980) from:
- District Courts (1st instance)
- Courts of First Instance (1st instance)
- Administrative Court of First Instance (1st instance)
- Magistrates Courts (2nd instance)
- Supreme Court (3rd instance)
Other available resources:
- more than 1 000 important decisions from 1929-1979
- texts of Greek legislation
- legal books
- legal articles and studies
- text of opinions, comments and observations on court decisions
- scientific opinions published in the legal scientific press
- collection of administrative documents (circulars, decisions of independent authorities).
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