The Hellenic Competition Commission disagrees with Directorate General’s recommendation on the illegality of territorial restrictions on legal practice

The HCC’s Directorate General of Competition, acting on a lawyer’s complaint, had taken the view that the long-standing legal restrictions on lawyers to represent their clients in courts (in particular civil and administrative courts) or to sign notarial deeds outside the territory of their local Bar Association, to which they are members, distort free competition in the legal services market and should no longer be enforced (see news item on 30-Jan-08). The Hellenic Competition Commission however took (by majority) the opposite view that territorial restrictions on legal practice imposed by the country’s Bar Associations do not violate national or EU competition law. The full text of the Commission’s decision is available at the HCC’s website (in Greek).