Greek law
The right of Greece is the sum judicially enforceable social norms in Greece.
- 3.1 Tax Law
Legal History
Antiquity
→ Main article Ancient Greek Law
Sources for legal history of archaic Greece are mainly found in myths and epics such as the Odyssey and Iliad. The scattered descriptions of Greek law show the idea of an immutable law of divine origin, for the validity of which attestation by a political authority was neither necessary nor possible. Disputes were brought before the king, who this using the θέμιστες ( themistes ), bearer of the verdicts of Zeus, broke. From the 7th to 6th century BC first records of the law are held. The best known are those of Lycurgus in Sparta 650, the Drakon 621 in Athens, Solon 594 also in Athens, the Zaleukos in southern Italy, the Charondas in Sicily, of Philolaus in Thebes, the Pheidon in Corinth and an anonymous collection in Gortyn.
From the 5th century BC, the development of classical Greek law begins. Religious ideas are still of great importance, the idea of law as a static divine standards, however, replaced by more flexible ideas. It soon develop clear legal principles, as people, family, inheritance and property law. In addition to these autonomous legal systems of the various Greek cities, the Greek maritime trade required a private commercial law, which was marked by speed and low formal requirements. This common Greek Maritime Law received its own courts in Athens, Rhodes, Syracuse and Marseilles. A systematic treatment of Greek law, as is typical of Roman law, did not take place: the ancient Greek law was a law of the practitioner who λογογράφοι ( logográphoi ) and the συνήγοροι ( synégoroi ), whose role in the free speech lay courts existed. A more profound analysis of the law is to be found in the philosophers Plato, Aristotle and Theophrastus, which are of paramount importance for the early philosophy of law and comparative law.
Hellenism
The usual in the general history of the Hellenistic period from 323 BC to 30 BC is not taken mostly in legal history: The classic Greek law remained until at least 146 BC (destruction of Corinth ), sometimes even up to 212 AD ( Constitutio Antoniniana ) came into force. A characteristic of the Hellenistic law is law Unification of Private Law. The Hellenistic private law was a common Greek law, which applied to all those who spoke Koine; as is common in that time, but its validity was limited to such persons and the validity of a legal system tied to the person: therefore was for Roman citizens in Greece, the Roman law. Later they had to also choose between different legal systems, which has been regularly exercised by the choice of the language of commerce. Since the Constitutio Antoniniana 212 AD was formally Roman law for all residents of the Roman Empire. But the Hellenistic Legal preserved in the enforcement of Roman law with Greek philosophy of law.
Byzantine and post- Byzantine law
Starting point of the Byzantine law is introduced from 528 Corpus Juris Civilis. The commentary on Justinian's prohibition prevented a systematic treatment by the law; the ban could only be partially circumvented by allowing kata poda, paratitla, indices and paragraphai. The screen that appears after 534 Novellae were almost exclusively in Greek and that evidence of an incipient Hellenization of Roman law. The Eclogue Leo III. ( 741 ), the Procheiros nomos ( 870-878 ) and the Epanagoge of Basil I., and the basilicas of Leo the Wise testify to the need for practicable Greek-speaking laws that went beyond Greek translations of Justinian's laws. Constantine IX. founded in 1045 an Imperial law school, which published numerous legal and judgment collections. The last boom was the Byzantine law by the Hexabiblos of Konstantinos Harmenopoulos 1345, which is characterized by the blending of Roman and Greek law with Christian ethics.
The Byzantine law remained even after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 the law was and continues to evolve. Just as the Ottoman Kadi law only anwandte between Turks, litigation between Christians were settled by Byzantine law. Attempts to gradually expand the Ottoman law the Christians meant that Christians their disputes were primarily simple religious authorities of their own religion. This settlement gained more and more official character and expanded from family and inheritance to property rights and criminal law from. Of the inferior courts before the episcopal courts of metropoleis was for appeals; as the highest court acted the patriarchal synod of Constantinople Opel. The law applied was mixed in the first line of Hexabiblos common law, developed new legal institutions such as direct substitution, to form relief in contract law and company law under its influence. In the Danubian Principalities we adopted new codification of Byzantine law. The most important are: The Constitution of Alexander Ypsilanti from 1780, the Codul Calimach of Prince Scarlat Callimachi of 1817, the Legiuirea Caragea of Ioannis Georgios Karatzas of 1818 and the Syntagma of Michael Photinopoulos of 1765th
Modern
After the outbreak of the Greek revolution of 1821, three liberal and democratic constitutions were put in place at short intervals in 1822, 1823 and 1827. The Constitution of 1827 contained a clause according to which a civil code modeled after the French civil code should be created soon. However, the head of state Ioannis Kapodistrias ignored this passage and left the Byzantine law its validity. French law still prevailed in other areas: since 1807 there was a Greek translation of the French Code de commerce, the Greek merchants to process their trades served. 1823 joined the Criminal Code following the model of the French Penal Code in force.
After 1833 Otto of Wittelsbach ruled as an absolute monarch, has commissioned this Georg Ludwig von Maurer, a trailer of the historical school, with the codification of Greek law. The scheme developed by him of Civil Procedure remained until 1968, applicable law, the court system until 1988, Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code until 1951. According to the resignation of Mason in 1835 issued a royal decree for the general civil law, the validity of the Byzantine law in the form of Hexabiblos and the local customary law certain. Since the Hexabiblos contributed in many areas the requirements of the time little account was placed based on the results of the German Pandektenwissenschaft in its interpretation.
A new revolution in 1862 brought George I rule over Greece one, since 1864 under a new constitution, which remained in force until a reform in 1911. Due to constitutional problems was a 1874 imagined draft Civil Code, which was based on the statute books of France, Italy and Saxony, never applicable law. A renewed attempt of codification failed in 1922. A new Commission began its work in 1930 and laid before 1937 designs, with their coordination Georgios Bali was commissioned in 1938. From 1940 onwards, thus for a short time was the first time in Greece a civil code; Basis of substantive law was ordered by the Pandektistik Byzantine law. However, the entry of German troops in the Balkan campaign 1941, its validity will put a swift end. After the end of World War II, the Code was revised in 1940, put into force in 1946, the revision rejected, and finally explains the Astikos Kodikas in the version of 1940 to be valid.
Constitutional History from 1952 was a modified version of the Constitution of 1911. At a coup in 1967, the Greek military dictatorship, which ended with the return to democracy in 1974 followed. The Constitution of 1975 is still the current Constitution of Greece.
Sources of law
As sources of law are valid in Greece, the legislation of Parliament and the common law. Court judgments and scientific literature are no formal sources of law.