Greece cuts first-instance court decision time from 774 to 357 days, 18 months after judicial reform
The time for a Greek first-instance ruling fell 54% to 357 days after the September 2024 judicial map overhaul, with the clearance rate crossing 100% for the first time.
From snail's pace to EU average: the data
In the judicial year 2023-2024, Greek first-instance courts took an average of 774 days to issue a ruling. By 2024-2025, that fell to 383 days. After 18 months of the new judicial map, it dropped further to 357 days – a 54% reduction.
The average time for first-instance decision in the EU is 307 days and we are at 309 days. So we have already met the target originally set for 2027.
- 2023-2024
- 774 days
- 2024-2025
- 383 days
- 18-month period
- 357 days
Clearance rate crosses the 100% threshold
The clearance rate – the ratio of cases closed to new cases filed – moved from 86.2% in 2023-2024 to 99.6% the following year. Over the full 18-month period, courts closed 618,239 cases against 588,339 new ones, a rate of 105.1%, meaning the system is now absorbing backlog.
This is not a temporary improvement but a new order of things.
- 2023-2024
- 86.2 %
- 2024-2025
- 99.6 %
- 18-month period
- 105.1 %
Athens, the biggest winner
The Athens first-instance court, which handles roughly half of all civil cases in the country, saw the most dramatic improvement. The estimated time for a ruling shrank from 1,448 days (nearly four years) in 2023-2024 to 478 days after 18 months – roughly 1.5 years.
The road ahead
The government's targets are ambitious. By end 2027, it aims for final civil decisions to take no more than 750 days, converging with the EU average of 627 days. By 2030, Greece wants to be among the five fastest judicial systems in Europe. Ministers pledged further IT upgrades and wider use of alternative dispute resolution.
Every three months the statistics will improve and our country will be among the top five in Europe.
