Diplomacy · Athens and Luxembourg City
Greek Supreme Court rejects Kövesi's appeal over two-year term for EU prosecutors, deepening institutional clash
The administrative plenary of Greece's Supreme Court ruled 72-10 that the European Chief Prosecutor lacked standing to challenge a decision limiting three delegated prosecutors to a two-year renewal instead of five.
AI text based on reports by NewsIT, Η Ναυτεμπορική, Ειδήσεις and other publishers. Published . How it is made
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In brief
The Areios Pagos ruled 72-10 that Laura Kövesi lacked standing to appeal the two-year renewal of three Greek EU prosecutors, as Greek law reserves such challenges for the affected judges themselves.
Kövesi's representative, Spyros Vlachopoulos, argued that the EPPO College's five-year renewal decision should prevail over national procedures, warning that country-by-country discretion threatens the office's unity.
Ten dissenting judges favoured sending a preliminary reference to the Court of Justice of the EU to clarify both the admissibility of the appeal and the competent authority for term renewals.
The Supreme Judicial Council is selecting three additional European prosecutors from roughly 20-25 candidates, with Dimitris Zimianitis and Olympia Kleitsaki among the frontrunners.
- 1 NovEPPO College decides five-year renewal for Papandreou, Thanou, and Mouzakis without prior Greek council consultation, triggering Athens' objections.
- 1 JunKövesi sends request to Greek authorities describing the renewal as a final administrative step; Supreme Judicial Council unanimously grants a two-year extension instead.
- 24 JunAreios Pagos plenary hears Kövesi's appeal; Vlachopoulos argues for EU law primacy and a CJEU preliminary reference.
- 24 JunCourt rejects appeal 72-10 as inadmissible; same day, council selects three new EU prosecutors for Greece.
The ruling
Greece's Supreme Court (Areios Pagos) dismissed as inadmissible the appeal filed by European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi against a decision of the Supreme Judicial Council. The council had renewed the terms of three Greek delegated European prosecutors for two years, rather than the five-year renewal decided by the EPPO College in Luxembourg. The court's administrative plenary voted 72 to 10 to reject the appeal, holding that under Greek law only the affected judicial officers themselves may bring such challenges, and even they cannot do so when the council's decision was unanimous.
“The renewal for five years had been decided for all European prosecutors by the College in Luxembourg, and each country cannot renew at its own discretion, something that would endanger the unity of the European Public Prosecutor's Office.”
The legal dispute
The clash traces back to November 2025, when the EPPO College announced a five-year renewal for the three prosecutors (Popi Papandreou, Charikleia Thanou, and Dionysis Mouzakis) without prior consultation of the Greek Supreme Judicial Council. Athens insisted the council is the sole competent body for service matters of judicial officers. After Kövesi sent a request describing the renewal as a final administrative step, the council unanimously granted a two-year extension, citing the need for the prosecutors to complete ongoing case files, including the Tempe railway disaster and the OPEKEPE subsidy scandal.
Kövesi did not appear in person; constitutional lawyer Spyros Vlachopoulos argued on her behalf, stressing the primacy of EU law and urging the court to refer a preliminary question to the Court of Justice of the European Union on who holds the competence to renew terms. Ten dissenting judges supported that view, both on the admissibility of Kövesi's appeal and on the substantive competence question.
What happens next
The same day, the Supreme Judicial Council is expected to select three new European prosecutors from a pool of about 20 to 25 candidates, following Kövesi's request for additional staff due to workload. Frontrunners include Dimitris Zimianitis, who previously served at the EPPO in Luxembourg, and Olympia Kleitsaki. The rejection of the appeal leaves open the possibility of a further challenge directly before the CJEU, though no such step has been confirmed.
The prosecutors and their cases
The three prosecutors at the centre of the dispute have handled some of Greece's most sensitive investigations. Their dossiers include aspects of the Tempe train crash and the OPEKEPE agricultural payments scandal. The two-year renewal was explicitly framed by the council as a measure to allow them to finish these cases.
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Sources and context
- NewsITΟ Άρειος Πάγος απέρριψε την προσφυγή Κοβέσι για την ανανέωση της θητείας των τριών ευρωεισαγγελέων για 2 χρόνια
- Η ΝαυτεμπορικήΑπορρίφθηκε από τη διοικητική ολομέλεια του Αρείου Πάγου η προσφυγή Κοβέσι
- Ειδήσεις - νέα - Το Βήμα OnlineΑπορρίφθηκε ως απαράδεκτη η προσφυγή Κοβέσι - Το σκεπτικό | ΤΟ ΒΗΜΑ
- H KαθημερινήΑρειος Πάγος: Απορρίφθηκε η προσφυγή Κοβέσι για τη θητεία των Ευρωπαίων Εισαγγελέων
- Laura Kövesi
- European Chief Prosecutor who appealed the two-year renewal of three Greek delegated prosecutors
- Spyros Vlachopoulos
- Constitutional lawyer who represented Kövesi before the Areios Pagos
- Popi Papandreou
- Greek delegated European prosecutor whose term was renewed for two years
- Charikleia Thanou
- Greek delegated European prosecutor whose term was renewed for two years
- Dionysis Mouzakis
- Greek delegated European prosecutor whose term was renewed for two years (some sources refer to him as Antonis Mouzakis)
- Dimitris Zimianitis
- Frontrunner candidate for one of three new Greek European prosecutor posts
- Olympia Kleitsaki
- Frontrunner candidate for one of three new Greek European prosecutor posts
- Places
- Athens, Luxembourg
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