Many members of the Greek diaspora who live in the United States, Canada, the UK, Australia and worldwide have obtained divorce judgments, adoption orders, child-custody rulings, or legal name-change decisions issued by foreign courts. However, in order for these judgments to be legally valid and enforceable in Greece, they must first be recognized by the Greek courts. This process is formally known as the recognition of foreign court decisions in Greece.

Recognition is required in cases such as foreign divorce recognition in Greece, adoption recognition in Greece, Greek name-change registration, child custody recognition, establishment of parental status, or correction of Greek legal records. Without this recognition, Greek authorities treat the event as if it has not legally occurred, even if it is fully valid abroad. This affects key procedures such as Greek citizenship applications, Greek passports and IDs, Greek marriage licensing, inheritance and probate proceedings, registration of life events, and property matters in Greece.

At E. Chatzidimitriou LLC, we represent Greek diaspora clients in the recognition of foreign court decisions before the Hellenic courts, including divorces, adoptions, name changes, guardianship and parental-rights judgments. Our legal team prepares the full court application, ensures compliance with Greek procedural and substantive law, arranges certified legal translations, and manages the case from start to finish until a final Greek court judgment is issued. Following recognition, we also handle registration with the competent Greek registry offices and municipal records, ensuring your personal and family status is fully updated in Greece.

This service is essential for individuals who wish to apply for Greek citizenship by descent or Greek dual citizenship, register a foreign divorce in Greece, correct or change Greek birth, marriage or family-registry records, process inheritance matters, or legally align their identity documents across countries. Special legal care is required in international divorce recognition, adoption of minors or adults, name-change recognition, child custody rulings, and recognition of foreign parental rights, as these matters involve complex conflict-of-law and procedural rules.

Proper recognition of a foreign court judgment ensures that your legal, family, identity and inheritance rights in Greece are secure, preventing delays, disputes, and administrative complications in the future.

If you have a foreign divorce, adoption order, name-change decision or any other court judgment that needs to be recognized in Greece, you may submit your details through our consultation form. A qualified Greek attorney from E. Chatzidimitriou LLC will review your case and provide an initial legal assessment at no cost, explaining the steps required and the expected timeline for recognition in Greece.