Family lawyers in Greece are specialized in providing legal services that are regulated by the Family Law. This area of law refers to any legal matter that can arise from family dynamics, starting from marriage to divorce. Family law can apply since two persons get married (through civil marriage or through the traditional marriage) and it regulates matters concerning the rights and the obligations of the spouses.
If you are interested in finding out more details on Greek family law you can address to our team of Greek lawyers; please mind that we can also represent foreign clients in matters related to the family law. For instance, we can present the procedures to get married in Greece in the case in which a spouse is a Greek citizen and the other partner is a foreigner.
Table of Contents
What does the Greek family law regulate?
There are numerous areas of practice when we refer to the family legislation in Greece. Our team of family lawyers in Greece can offer in-depth information regarding any matter that can arise from this branch of law; more importantly, our lawyers have the expertise in representing clients in front of local courts, as well as to provide legal counselling in any steps that can happen before addressing to the court.
Some of the basic legal matters that fall under the supervision of the Greek family law are the following: marriage, adoptions, paternity disputes, prenuptial agreements, legal separation and divorce (which, in Greece, is of two kinds – contested and uncontested) and numerous legal matters arising in the eventuality of a divorce, regardless of its type.
Here, we mention the next aspects that can appear during the dissolution of the marriage: the child custody (there are different types of custody recognized in Greece), child alimony, the visitation rights of the parent who does not live with the children after the divorce is finalized, spouse support (in certain cases, one spouse can have the obligation to provide financial support to the other spouse after the divorce).
Of course, our team of lawyers in Greece can assist two divorcing parties in all the aspects regarding the division of the couple’s assets and properties; the procedure will be done in accordance with the stipulations of the law and the particularities of the case. It is important to know that, before starting the divorce procedure or any other procedure that can arise when two spouses do not get along, our family lawyers in Greece will start by proposing mediation as a way of resolving any conflict.
Persons who are going through a divorce and will eventually have to split the assets of the family, including properties, can contact our team for legal representation if they want to buy a house in Greece.
Oftentimes, one of the partners will use the money obtained after the divorce is finalized in order to purchase a separate residential property, for his or her own needs.
What are the main legal acts applicable to the Greek family law?
There are several legal acts that prescribe the legal framework for marriage and the dissolution of a marriage in Greece. Some of the acts prescribe the rights and the obligations of the party, while others prescribe the legal procedures that have to be followed by the parties and which can be enforced with the assistance of our law firm in Greece.
For instance, the basic rule of law regarding marriage and matrimonial aspects is the Greek Civil Code (Book IV). All the procedures regarding this are given by the Code of Civil Procedure (Book IV). Other basic rules of law that refer to the Greek family law are the following:
- the Presidential Decree 391/1982 regarding the civil marriage in Greece;
- the Law 590/1977, prescribing the Charter of the Greek Orthodox Church;
- the Law 4356/2015, which prescribes the cohabitation agreements of partners;
- the Law 3719/2008, referring to the family and the children;
- if a divorce will take place, the law (given by the Article 22 of the Code of Civil Procedure) stipulates that the legal procedure will be held in the One Member Court of First Instance.
According to the law in Greece, a divorce can be held in a Greek court if one of the spouse is a Greek national; the Greek court has full competence on the case even in the situation in which the Greek national has his or her habitual residence in another country. The same applies even in the case in which the Greek national has never lived in Greece, as per the Article 601 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Currently, the Greek family law does not provide any legal framework for same-sex couples; they cannot get married in Greece and thus, they do not have any rights. Couples who have lived together under a civil partnership, which is recognized in Greece, are not required to address to a local court in the event of a dissolution of the civil partnership.
Please address to our family lawyers in Greece if you need more details on any matter regulated by the family law. Our Greek law firm can assist you and can represent you in front of local courts if you will need to divorce in Greece.