The Council of State, Greece’s supreme administrative court, on Tuesday ruled in favor of the backdated payment of pensions that were wrongfully cut between June 2015 and May 2016.
The court ruled in favor of pensioners who had appealed against the pension cuts, seeking the backdated return for the above period.
All those that had contested the cuts in court will receive backdated payments.
Those that have not yet initiated proceedings for the return of the sums withheld reserve the right to do so in the future.
The government has also the option to pass a legislation to return the sums due for those 11 months to those that have not yet claimed them in court.
For the return of pension cuts after 2016 when the “Katrougalos” pension law was passed, the CoS found that backdated payments of pension cuts could not be claimed.
By contrast, for the period from 2013 until June 2015 when the CoS plenum issued a ruling finding the pension cuts after 2012 unconstitutional, the court on Tuesday repeated its 2015 ruling. This means that only pensioners that had contested the cuts in court by June 2015 are now eligible for the backdated payment of the sums withheld.
“Katrougalos” Law for further pension cuts was one of Greece’s obligations towards the lenders following the 3. bailout signed by SYRIZA in summer 2015.
PS as the old Latin chaps would say: sic transit gloria memorandi Thus passes the glory of memoranda of understanding between Greece and lenders
