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Litigation & Arbitration · Sub-Practice

When partners
become adversaries,
the company is at risk.

These disputes rarely stay contained — they paralyse decision-making, threaten contracts and put the company's survival at risk. We act for shareholders, directors and the companies themselves, with the commercial judgment to know when to fight and when to negotiate a way out.

What We Handle Discuss Your Dispute
We act for shareholders, boards and companies
Minority shareholders seeking protection. Majority shareholders defending decisions. Boards facing deadlock. We understand every side of a shareholder dispute because we have acted on every side.
Facing a corporate dispute?
Initial consultation to assess your position, the available remedies and the realistic range of outcomes. Confidential and without obligation.
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What We Handle Our Approach Process Experience FAQ Related

Scope of Practice

Corporate disputes
from deadlock to dissolution.

We act in disputes between shareholders, between shareholders and the company, and between directors and the board — across Greek private and public companies, joint ventures and shareholder structures with foreign investors. A shareholder dispute lawyer in Greece will read the articles and any shareholders' agreement before advising on remedies.

Minority Investor Protection
Claims for unfair prejudice and oppression of minority shareholders. Information rights, inspection rights and challenges to decisions that disadvantage minority interests. Exit mechanisms where the relationship has broken down.
Board & Governance Deadlock
Disputes arising from 50/50 ownership structures and equally divided boards. Deadlock-breaking mechanisms, including those provided for in shareholders agreements and those available under Greek company law.
Breach of Company Agreements
Enforcement of pre-emption rights, drag-along and tag-along provisions, non-compete obligations and information covenants. Damages and specific performance claims arising from breach.
Piercing the Corporate Veil
Claims to disregard corporate separateness where the corporate form is used to evade obligations or perpetrate fraud — including in cross-border structures. We have secured a successful piercing claim with international elements.
Director Duties & Liability
Claims against directors for breach of fiduciary duty, conflict of interest and mismanagement under Law 4548/2018 and the Greek Civil Code. Defence of directors facing such claims.
Company Dissolution & Winding Up
Applications for judicial dissolution on just and equitable grounds. Disputes over the winding-up process, asset distribution and the conduct of liquidators.

Our Approach

Corporate disputes are personal.
We keep the strategy commercial.

These disputes are rarely just legal disputes. They are personal — between business partners, sometimes between family members, often between people who built something together and now disagree on what it should become. That makes them harder to resolve than ordinary commercial disputes, and easier to mishandle. Most matters that reach a shareholder dispute lawyer in Greece are about control or exit, and the remedy should match which one it is.

We approach every shareholder dispute with the question that matters most: what does a workable outcome actually look like? Sometimes that means litigating a clear legal right. Often it means structuring an exit — a buy-out, a restructuring of governance rights, or a negotiated separation that protects the value of the company for everyone involved. Deadlock is easier to resolve before positions harden.

"In a shareholder dispute, winning the legal argument and winning the commercial outcome are not always the same thing. We advise on both — and tell our clients honestly when they are different."

Dionysios Pantazis has secured a successful piercing-of-corporate-veil claim with cross-border elements for a Czech company, and has advised on shareholder structures in transactions including gold mine acquisitions in Greece. That dual experience — contentious and transactional — means we understand how shareholder relationships are built, and exactly where they tend to break.

Judicial origin
Founded by a former judge
Company law disputes turn on how a court will read fiduciary duties, governance provisions and the conduct of the parties. We assess every case the way a court will.
Cross-border structures
Piercing the corporate veil — internationally
A successful piercing-of-corporate-veil claim with cross-border elements, securing recovery for a Czech client against assets shielded by corporate structure.
Transactional insight
We have built the structures we now litigate
Advisory experience on shareholder agreements, joint ventures and acquisitions — including gold mine and private island acquisitions — gives us practical insight most litigators lack.
Exit strategy
Buy-outs, restructuring and negotiated separation
Where litigation is not the answer, we structure exits — valuations, buy-out mechanisms and governance restructuring that resolve the dispute without destroying the company.

How We Handle Corporate Disputes

From the first sign of conflict
to resolution.

STEP 01
Position Assessment
We review the shareholders agreement, the company's articles and the governing law to map your rights, your exposure and the realistic range of outcomes — before any formal step is taken.
STEP 02
Strategy: Litigate or Negotiate
We advise honestly on whether your position is best served by litigation, negotiation, or a structured exit. Many shareholder disputes resolve through restructuring rather than judgment.
STEP 03
Proceedings or Negotiation
Where litigation is necessary, full conduct of proceedings before Greek courts. Where negotiation is the better path, we structure and lead the process — valuation, buy-out terms, governance changes.
STEP 04
Resolution & Implementation
Judgment enforcement where litigated. Drafting and implementation of settlement agreements, amended shareholders agreements or exit mechanisms where negotiated.

Our Experience

Corporate disputes,
litigated and resolved.

Litigation
Corporate & Partnership Conflicts
Disputes between shareholders and business partners across multiple sectors — minority oppression claims, deadlock disputes and breach of shareholders agreements, litigated through Greek courts at every instance.
Transactional
Acquisitions & Corporate Structures
Advisory experience on high-value acquisitions including gold mine acquisitions in Greece and private island acquisitions — giving direct insight into how shareholder structures are built and where disputes tend to originate.
In-House Perspective
Governance at Fortune 50 Scale
Dionysios Pantazis's role as general counsel to a Fortune 50 technology group involves governance oversight across multiple corporate entities and countries — informing a practical, board-level understanding of how governance disputes actually arise and resolve.
Corporate · Veil Piercing
Victory in a piercing of the corporate veil claim
Obtained judgment for a foreign company in a claim to pierce the corporate veil of a Greek counterparty.

Frequently Asked Questions

Corporate dispute
questions, answered.

What counts as a corporate dispute in Greece?+

A corporate dispute is any conflict arising within a company's ownership or governance — between shareholders, between shareholders and the company, or between directors and the board. This covers minority oppression, board deadlock, breach of shareholders' agreements and disputes over dissolution, heard by the Greek civil courts at every instance.

How is a board deadlock resolved under Greek law?+

Board deadlock — typically from 50/50 ownership splits — is resolved through mechanisms in the shareholders' agreement, such as casting votes or buy-sell provisions, or failing that through Greek company law remedies including judicial dissolution on just and equitable grounds. We assess which route protects your commercial position first.

What can a minority shareholder do if outvoted unfairly?+

A minority shareholder facing unfair prejudice can bring claims for information and inspection rights, challenge decisions that damage minority interests, or pursue an exit mechanism such as a buy-out. We assess the realistic remedies available before recommending litigation over a negotiated exit.

Can a shareholders' agreement really be enforced in Greek courts?+

Yes. Pre-emption rights, drag-along and tag-along clauses, non-compete obligations and information covenants in a shareholders' agreement are enforceable through damages claims or specific performance. We have secured enforcement of these provisions and advise on drafting them to withstand a future dispute.

What is piercing the corporate veil and when does it apply?+

Piercing the corporate veil disregards a company's separate legal personality where its structure is used to evade obligations or commit fraud, including across borders. We have secured a successful piercing claim with cross-border elements for a Czech client, recovering assets otherwise shielded by the corporate form.

What does an initial consultation for a corporate dispute cost?+

The initial consultation is confidential and without obligation — we assess your legal position, the available remedies and the realistic range of outcomes before discussing fees. Fee arrangements are agreed individually based on the size and complexity of the dispute, and we are transparent about costs from the outset.

Facing a corporate dispute?
Let us assess your position.

Initial consultation to assess your legal position, the available remedies and the realistic range of outcomes. Confidential and without obligation.

Get in Touch +30 210 36 33 694