Family Law

Our company has a long tradition of engagement and specialization in extrajudicial and judicial resolution of family law disputes.

In particular, we actively deal with on a judicial and advisory level:

– filing divorce lawsuits (for reasons of strong disruption, two-year separation).
– filing applications for interim measures for the relocation of one spouse in case of termination of marital cohabitation.
– filing lawsuits and applications for interim measures for the assignment of custody and regulation of communication rights.
– filing lawsuits and applications for interim measures for determining the contribution of one spouse to the financial needs of the other spouse and children.
– claiming ownership interests between spouses in acquired assets during the marriage.
– filing lawsuits and applications for interim measures to resolve disputes between parents regarding issues of their children, such as naming, school choice, medical care.
– swift and effective protection of children who have fallen victims to international abduction.

It is a fact that family disputes require delicate handling, and their successful outcome is based, initially, on the relationship of trust developed between the client and the lawyer but also on the development of a strategic plan. This is to ensure that the court forms a complete and accurate picture of who is truly responsible for the breakdown of the marital cohabitation, what the actual financial situation of the obligated party for alimony or property transfer acquired during the marriage is, and who best represents the interests of the children. In this context, we build a daily and in-depth collaboration with our clients to highlight the aspects that form the basis of their claims.

However, the effective protection of our client is of paramount and independent importance. Many times, this involves the swift mobilization of legal means aimed at overturning the plans of the adversaries. To this end, the legal team of the firm, in the usual cases where the party obligated to pay alimony tries to alienate their assets to frustrate the satisfaction of the creditor, extensively engages in the practical securing of the beneficiary’s right to alimony through i.e. the seizure of movable and immovable property of the obligated party, filing a lawsuit with the aim of overturning property transfers, and also before criminal courts, by filing complaints and supporting the charge of the offense of violating the obligation to pay alimony. In all these cases, our experience has shown that continuous pressure through judicial and extrajudicial means is sometimes the only way to secure the claims of our clients. At the same time, thorough preparation regarding the actual material and, consequently, the legal nature of each case, always in collaboration with our clients, allows us to develop a strategic action plan for the immediate, complete, and effective protection of the rights we defend.

As for our specialization, our firm closely monitors international developments in family law while actively shaping the course of Greek jurisprudence, often challenging legal knowledge and arguments against outdated precedents. With Resolution 2079/2015 of the Council of Europe, member states of the European Union are encouraged to legislatively promote shared parental responsibility: joint custody – joint care, alternating residence system. Our firm takes on and consciously promotes cases through which the opportunity is given to challenge as outdated and fundamentally unconstitutional the well-established positions of the socio-legal superiority of the mother, lack of agreement between parents, and stable residence, unfortunately accepted according to the outdated jurisprudence. Our approach always examines the consequences of not applying shared custody on the psychological well-being of children. After all, it is fundamentally in the child’s real interest to develop an equal, healthy, and balanced relationship with both parents.

The participation of both parents in raising children has been a social demand for several years, one with which we align scientifically and through our legal practice. This position aligns with the mandates of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). We strongly supported the principle of joint care – alternating residence, where the child secures at least 40% of their time with each parent. Over time, we achieved the issuance of relevant court decisions that disrupted prevailing, unscientific jurisprudential waters. Legislative ‘justification’ came with Law 4800/2021, which introduced the ‘joint and equal’ as the basis for child custody. However, social norms do not change as easily as the law. On the contrary, numerous individual brave struggles of people defending their rights are required. We stand honorably beside these people, equipping the legal arsenal with effective means and ensuring their rights.

Clearly, the rights and obligations of parents are determined by the true interests of the child. Guided by this principle, we advise our clients and defend their request, either for joint or exclusive custody, in cases of unsuitable or even abusive parents.

Finally, in modern family law issues that we have been called upon to address, cases of international child abduction are included, where swift and appropriate legal mobilization are a ‘key’ to the effective return of the child. This also involves cases of the free movement of same-sex families in Europe. The family, as a term, acquires a European conceptual background, namely, a more inclusive one. The rights of same-sex couples require special and specific protection.

The personal nature of family disputes makes it imperative to converge the parents’ views and achieve an agreement, preferably avoiding toxic judicial confrontation, something we promote and support with all our strength throughout our involvement in each case. However, the reality is usually different, and seeking a solution through the judicial route becomes unavoidable.