Litigation lawyers in Cyprus

The Cyprus courts and where your claim is heard

Cyprus has a common law system: English common law and equitable principles are followed unless a Cyprus statute or the Constitution provides otherwise, and English case law carries strong persuasive weight. Civil claims start in the District Court, and the value of the claim decides which judge hears it — a District Judge for claims up to €100,000, a Senior District Judge for claims of €100,001 to €500,000, and the President of the District Court for claims above €500,000. Allocation is fixed on filing, by value. Specialist courts sit alongside the District Courts, including the Family Courts, the Rent Control Court, the Industrial Disputes Court and the Administrative Court. A dedicated Commercial Court and an Admiralty Court were established by Law 69(I)/2022 for higher-value commercial and shipping disputes, but they are pending commencement and had not yet begun to try cases, so for now these claims continue in the District Court.

The 2023 Civil Procedure Rules

Cases filed on or after 1 September 2023 are governed by new Civil Procedure Rules modelled closely on the English CPR. They introduce an overriding objective — the court must deal with cases justly and at proportionate cost, and the parties have a duty to help it do so — backed by active case management, in which the court sets and controls the timetable, if necessary of its own motion. Mandatory pre-action protocols apply before a claim is filed: for a specified monetary claim the defendant must acknowledge the letter of claim within 14 calendar days and say when it will respond in full, and non-compliance can be penalised in costs or by a stay. "Disclosure" has replaced "discovery": each side gives general disclosure of the relevant documents with a disclosure statement, and a party can apply for specific disclosure and inspection. Our guide to the civil claims court process in Cyprus walks through each step.

How a claim proceeds, and how long it takes

A claim begins with a claim form and particulars of claim (the statement of claim), filed at the competent District Court and served on the defendant; service abroad may need the court's leave. The defendant files a memorandum of appearance within 14 days of service, and the defence, with any counterclaim, within 28 days of filing the appearance. If the defendant does not appear or defend in time, the claimant can apply for judgment in default, which the court may set aside on good reason and an arguable defence on the merits. Realistic timing matters: a contested case can take roughly four to six years to reach trial, and shortening that is the purpose of the 2023 reform. Where there is no real defence, summary judgment can resolve a clear case in about three to six months without a full trial.

Injunctions and freezing orders

In urgent cases the outcome often turns on an early order. Under section 32 of the Courts of Justice Law 14/1960 the court can grant an interim injunction where it is just and convenient to do so. Cyprus does not apply the plain American Cyanamid test: the applicant must satisfy a statutory three-limb test — a serious question to be tried, a probability that the claimant is entitled to relief, and that it will be difficult or impossible to do complete justice later if the order is refused — and the order must also be just and equitable. As the Supreme Court held in Odysseos v Pieris (1982) 1 CLR 557, "a probability" means something more than a mere possibility but much less than the balance of probabilities, so the merits limb is stricter than under American Cyanamid. Following English case law, the courts grant domestic and worldwide freezing (Mareva) injunctions, search orders and Norwich Pharmacal disclosure orders. In cases of extreme urgency an order can be made without notice, returnable for the respondent to object, on full and frank disclosure of all material facts and usually against an undertaking in damages. Breach of an injunction is a contempt of court that can carry imprisonment. Our guide to injunctions in Cyprus explains the requirements in detail.

Time limits for bringing a claim

Under the Limitation of Actions Law 66(I)/2012 most claims — in contract, tort, debt and restitution — must be brought within six years of the cause of action accruing. Negligence, nuisance and breach of statutory duty carry a three-year period, and defamation one year. A claim secured by a mortgage, charge or pledge has a twelve-year period, and a final judgment can be enforced for fifteen years from the date it became final. Because time runs from accrual and the periods are strict, the first thing we check is whether your claim is still in time.

Costs, funding and appeals

Costs follow the event: the losing party is normally ordered to pay the winner's costs as well as its own. Recoverable costs are assessed by the court registrar on the scales set out in the applicable court regulations, and the registrar may award less than you actually paid, so in complex, high-value cases recovery is often only a fraction of the real spend. The court can also penalise unreasonable conduct, including a failure to follow the pre-action protocol. A first-instance judgment can be appealed to the Court of Appeal, created in the 2023 restructuring of the former Supreme Court into a Supreme Constitutional Court, a Supreme Court and a Court of Appeal. We advise on the merits, the realistic cost and the funding of every step before you commit. For more, see our litigation FAQ.