A dispute between Greece’s government and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is escalating into a broader institutional confrontation, centered on the tenure of European delegated prosecutors serving in the country.
The latest flashpoint concerns a decision by Greece’s top judicial authorities to renew the mandates of three European delegated prosecutors for two years rather than the five-year term endorsed by the EPPO’s governing College. The disagreement has prompted an intervention by EPPO Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi, who has challenged the decision before Greece’s highest civil and criminal court.
The case is expected to be reviewed next week by the full administrative plenary of the Greek Supreme Court (Areios Pagos), marking a significant test of the balance between national judicial authority and the operational independence of the EU’s anti-fraud prosecution service.
According to legal and judicial sources, Kövesi’s appeal seeks to overturn a decision by the Supreme Judicial Council of the Areios Pagos, which renewed the mandates of the three prosecutors - Popi Papandreou, Charikleia Thanou and Dionysios Mouzakis - for only two years. The EPPO had previously approved five-year renewals for the same officials.
The challenge faces significant procedural hurdles. Sources familiar with the matter note that Greek law does not appear to provide a specific legal remedy against decisions of the Supreme Judicial Council in such cases, a factor that could lead to the dismissal of the appeal. Even so, the move is widely interpreted as part of a broader strategy by the EPPO to exhaust all available domestic legal avenues before potentially taking the dispute to the European courts.
The confrontation comes amid growing tensions over the role and independence of the EPPO in member states. While the European prosecutor’s office has sought to ensure uniform standards across the bloc, national authorities retain important responsibilities in appointing and overseeing delegated prosecutors who operate within domestic judicial systems while investigating crimes affecting the European Union’s financial interests.
In parallel with the legal dispute, Greece’s Supreme Judicial Council is scheduled to meet this week to select three additional European delegated prosecutors for the country’s EPPO office. The appointments are expected to include one appellate prosecutor and two first-instance prosecutors, further expanding the Greek branch of the European prosecution service.
The outcome of the dispute could have implications beyond Greece, as it may help clarify the extent to which national judicial authorities can diverge from decisions taken by the EPPO’s central governing bodies and whether such disagreements ultimately fall under the jurisdiction of European courts.
