Council of State

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Supreme Administrative Court

The Hellenic Symvoulio tis Epikrateias is the Supreme Administrative Court of Greece. The Supreme Administrative Court, the Areios Pagos, which is the Supreme Civil and Criminal Court, and the Court of Audit, which has jurisdiction on the audit of the expenditures of the State, local government agencies and other legal entities, are the highest courts. In Greece there are two jurisdictions, the administrative and the civil/criminal, which are organized in three instances: the courts of first instance (lower courts), the courts of appeals (higher, appellate courts) and the Supreme Courts. The Supreme Administrative Court is at the top of the hierarchy of administrative courts.

The Supreme Administrative Court decides on cases regarding the citizen-state relationship in all administrative fields: social security, compensation claims against the State, taxation and patents, civil service, environment, public works’ and supplies’ competitions, execution of public works. The judgements of the Supreme Administrative Court provide the highest authority on legal precedent and set the standards for the interpretation of laws and the advancement of legal theory. Like all judicial decisions, the judgements of the Supreme Administrative Court are subject to compulsory enforcement against the Public Sector, local government agencies and public law legal persons. The Hellenic Supreme Administrative Court places great importance on creating bonds with foreign Supreme Administrative Courts with the aim to enrich the judicial experience all over the world.

Composition
The Supreme Administrative Court is composed of the President, ten Vice-Presidents, forty-nine councilors, fifty-six associate councilors and fifty assistant judges who are involved in the exercise of judicial duties. The President and Vice-Presidents of the Court are chosen by the Cabinet, while councilors, associate judges and assistant judges are promoted to the respective rank by decision of the supreme judicial council on the Supreme Administrative Court and on administrative justice.

Jurisdiction
The Supreme Administrative Court has jurisdiction to hear three broad categories of cases: a) petitions for judicial review of enforceable acts of the administrative authorities for excess of power or violation of the law, b) petitions for reversal of final judgements of ordinary administrative courts, c) appeals against decisions of the administrative courts of appeals on matters of building law and civil service, d) the elaboration of all decrees of a regulatory nature. The cases that come under the Supreme Administrative Court’s jurisdiction for annulment concern matters from all fields of law, except for matters that the law itself says that should be decided by administrative courts exercising full jurisdiction and except for cases brought forward by civil servants not of highest rank and of building law cases, which the law says should be decided in first instance by appellate courts and in second instance by the Supreme Administrative Court.

Exercise of jurisdiction
The Supreme Administrative Court exercises its jurisdiction in plenum or in sections of five or seven judges according to the subject-matter and the importance of the cases brought to trial and decides these cases upon the majority of the votes of the President, the Vice-Presidents and the councilors appearing on the bench. Cases of highest importance or cases raising issues of unconstitutionality of statutes are referred to the plenum of the Court.

Judicial administration
The management of the affairs of the judiciary including organization, human resources, budgets, accounting, facilities etc. is undertaken by the Ministry of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights. The Minister may delegate part of its competences to the President of the Supreme Administrative Court. The President of the Supreme Administrative Court may delegate further part of his administrative duties to judicial committees, which are constituted by him for a two-year term and are assisted in this work by the competent court secretaries.

Supreme judicial council on the Supreme Administrative Court and on administrative justice
Promotions, assignments to posts, transfers, detachments, and transfers to another judicial branch are decided by the supreme judicial council on the Supreme Administrative Court and on administrative justice. This Council is composed of the President of the Supreme Administrative Court and of members of the same Court chosen by lot from among those having served in it for at least two years, as specified by law. In the Council participates also the General Commissioner of State for Administrative Justice, on issues relating to judges of ordinary administrative courts and of the General Commission. In the Council also participate, without a right to vote, two judges of the branch concerned by the changes in the service status to which the changes in service status refer, who must be at least of the rank of Judge of Appeals or an equivalent rank and are chosen by lot, as specified by law. In the case of judgements concerning promotions to the posts of Councilors of State, as well as the selection of the members of the General Commissions of administrative courts, the supreme judicial council is supplemented by additional members, as specified by law. Should the Minister of Justice disagree with the judgement of the Supreme Judicial Council, he may refer the matter to the plenum of the respective highest court, as specified by law. The judge, whom the judgement concerns, has also the right of recourse under the conditions specified by the law.

Self-regulation
Since November 2008 the Supreme Administrative Court has its own Regulation which was issued upon delegated authority and was published in the Government’s Gazette.

Right to Present an Opinion The Supreme Administrative Court is well-represented in the law-making organs of the State and presents opinions on all matters concerning the judiciary, which are carefully prepared by relevant committees constituted by the President himself.

Services for the public
The Supreme Administrative Court has its own Office for Press and Public Relations and issues a monthly gazette of all recent case-law, legal bibliography, articles and comments on judicial decisions. Since 2006 the workings of the Supreme Administrative Court, both judicial and secretarial, are fully computerized and are made available to the public via the Internet.

View into the Future
The Supreme Administrative Court looks forward into the future with the plan to increase the transparency of its workings and improve the exchange of legal information between all foreign Supreme Administrative Courts.

PIKRAMMENOS PANAGIOTIS,
President of the Hellenic Supreme Administrative Court
Born in Athens in 1945. Graduate of the German School of Athens (1963). Law degree from the Law School of the University of Athens (1968). Member of the Athens bar specialized in maritime law (1969-1973). Master in Public Law (D.E.S. de Droit Public) from the University Paris II – Pantheon /Assas (1974). Appointed at the Supreme Administrative Court as assistant judge in 1976 after successful participation in the entrance examinations. Promoted to the post of Associate Councilor in 1981, to the post of Councilor in 1993 and to the post of Vice – President in 2007. During his sabbatical in the years 1988 – 1989, he studied European Law in the University Paris II – Pantheon /Assas. Councilor of the Greek Prime Minister for public - law questions (1991 - 1993). Member of the constitutionally based Supreme Special Court, of different judicial and service councils, of legislation advisory committees and of the Standing Cabinet Committee for draft legislation. President of the legislation advisory committee of the Ministry of Justice for the transposition in Greek law of the 2002/58 Direction of the European Community “concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector” and for the amendment of the law 2472/1997. President of the legislation advisory committee of the Ministry of Justice for the transposition in Greek law of the 2006/24 Direction “on the retention of data generated or processed in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communications services or of public communications networks”. General Director of the National School of Judges since October 2005.


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	Council of State ... In giving up politics, I am happy that I bequeath to my country the Council of State." Eleftherios Venizelos, 1934