Council of State

The legislative arrangements of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs for the utilization of specialized professionals, aimed at dealing with the problem of delays in the issue of thousands of main or auxiliary pensions, are within the constitutional and legal frameworks.

An Environment Ministry decision on the height of buildings insists that an additional bonus in floors as stipulated in the new building regulation can be applied in Athens as well, thus overriding a series of recent decisions by the Council of State on the matter.

The President of the Republic Katerina Sakellaropoulou extended an invitation to the leadership of the Greek justice system and the plenary of the Bar Association Presidents on January 16 to discuss and attempt to solve the issues plaguing the Greek justice system.

The Council of State has upheld Türkiye's withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention, also known as the Council of Europe Convention, on preventing violence against women.

The Administrative Courts Board of the Council of State made the final decision in the case regarding Türkiye's withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention, while the board found the decision "in accordance with the law."

I read the farewell letter that was published in Kathimerini by former Greek prime minister Panagiotis Pikrammenos following the recent death of his friend and colleague Giorgos Panagiotopoulos (both men served as presidents of the Council of State, the country's highest administrative court).

The process of appointing new presidents of the country's top courts began on Thursday with Justice Minister Konstantinos Tsiaras presenting the cabinet with a list of proposed candidates for the Supreme Court and the Council of State.

Testimony by Deputy Prime Minister Panagiotis Pikrammenos, one of 10 Greek officials implicated (but not incriminated) in the original Novartis investigation, points to political interference in the judicial handling of the probe, reports said Friday.

A series of decisions by the Council of State pave the way for the stalled multi-million-euro development of the former Athens airport plot at Elliniko on the Greek capital's southern coast to get back on track.

The plenary of the Council of State has approved a contract for the expansion of a passenger terminal in Piraeus for the docking of cruise liners as well as the sale of a 67 percent stake of Piraeus Port Authority (OLP) to Cosco.
The country's top constitutional court has ruled in favor of those contracts, rejecting the appeals by construction company Terna SA.

By George Gilson

A top advisor to main opposition New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis has warned that if the government during its last week in office appoints the new Supreme Court Chief Justice and Prosecutor after their term ends on 30 June and President Prokopis Pavlopoulos signs the necessary Presidential Decree, that could trigger a constitutional crisis.