THIRD SECTION

CASE OF MELETIOU AND OTHERS v. GREECE

(Application no. 28737/23)

JUDGMENT

STRASBOURG

26 February 2026

This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.

In the case of Meletiou and Others v. Greece,

The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:

 Diana Kovatcheva, President,
 Canòlic Mingorance Cairat,
 Vasilka Sancin, judges,

and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having deliberated in private on 5 February 2026,

Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:

PROCEDURE

1.  The case originated in an application against Greece lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on 12 July 2023.

2.  The applicants were represented by Mr S. Konstantopoulos, a lawyer practising in Thessaloniki.

3.  The Greek Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the application.

THE FACTS

4.  The applicants’ details and information relevant to the application are set out in the appended table.

5.  The applicants complained of the non-enforcement of a domestic judgment and of the lack of any effective remedy in domestic law to complain about it.

THE LAW

1. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 6 § 1 AND ARTICLE 13 OF THE CONVENTION

6.  The applicants complained of the non-enforcement of a domestic judgment given in their favour and of the lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in that regard. They relied, expressly or in substance, on Article 6 § 1 and Article 13 of the Convention.

7.  The Court reiterates that the execution of a judgment given by any court must be regarded as an integral part of a “hearing” for the purposes of Article 6. It also refers to its case-law concerning the non-enforcement or delayed enforcement of final domestic judgments (see Hornsby v. Greece, no. 18357/91, § 40, Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1997‑II).

8.  In the leading cases of Kanellopoulos v. Greece, no. 11325/06, 21 February 2008, and Bousiou v. Greece, no. 21455/10, 24 October 2013, the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.

9.  Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of these complaints. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the authorities did not deploy all necessary efforts to enforce fully and in due time judgment no. 2950/2013 of the three-member Administrative Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki in the applicants’ favour.

10.  The Court further notes that the applicants did not have at their disposal an effective remedy in respect of these complaints.

11.  These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention and Article 13 of the Convention.

2. APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION

12.  Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Kanellopoulos, cited above; and Bousiou, cited above) the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.

13.  The Court further notes that the respondent State has an outstanding obligation to enforce judgment no. 2950/2013 of the three-member Administrative Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki which remains enforceable.

FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,

1. Declares the application admissible;
2. Holds that this application discloses a breach of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention and Article 13 of the Convention concerning the non‑enforcement of the domestic judgment in the applicants’ favour and the lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in that regard;
3. Holds

(a)  that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table;

(b)  that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.

Done in English, and notified in writing on 26 February 2026, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.

 Viktoriya Maradudina Diana Kovatcheva

 Acting Deputy Registrar President

APPENDIX

Application raising complaints under Article 6 § 1 and Article 13 of the Convention

(non-enforcement or delayed enforcement of domestic decisions and lack of any effective remedy in domestic law)

[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.

[2] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.