Reforming Greece’s justice system could play a pivotal role in revitalizing investment and boosting productivity, according to a new report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released on Monday.
The analysis points to the slow pace of judicial proceedings, a backlog of unresolved cases, and protracted delays in enforcing contracts as major obstacles to doing business in the country.
The IMF warns that these inefficiencies undermine investor confidence and hamper economic activity. Streamlining the judicial process, it argues, would significantly enhance the Greek state’s ability to enforce laws, restructure struggling businesses more effectively, and create a more reliable institutional environment for investors.
The potential impact is far from trivial. According to the report, improving judicial efficiency could raise investment levels by 1 to 1.5 percent of GDP and deliver similar gains in overall productivity. Much of this growth would come from a more dynamic reallocation of resources and quicker business adaptation to market needs.
To get there, the IMF outlines a multi-pronged reform agenda. It emphasizes the need to modernize infrastructure, adopt digital technologies, strengthen the legal workforce, and improve incentives for judges and legal professionals. It also highlights the benefits of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms—like mediation and arbitration—which could help ease the burden on civil courts and accelerate legal proceedings.
These conclusions are based on economic modeling informed by international experience, particularly from countries such as Portugal and Slovakia, where comparable judicial reforms have yielded measurable improvements in investment and growth.
