By decision of the Minister of Justice, an admission examination is launched at the National School of Judiciary for the following areas: a) Administrative Justice for trainee judicial officers i) at the Council of State and ordinary administrative courts, ii) at the Court of Audit and the Advocate General Audit Office; b) Civil and Criminal Justice; c) Prosecutors; and d) Magistrates. There is a single admission examination, as far as the area of Civil and Criminal Justice and the area of Magistrates is concerned, which leads to a single list of final results.
The examination announcement specifies, inter alia, the number of trainees to be allocated to each area and the respective courts, the exact date and time of the admission examination, as well as the deadline for the submission of applications. Written examinations are conducted in Thessaloniki, and oral examinations are conducted in Athens.
To take part in the admission examination, eligible candidates must fulfil the following requirements:
- They have practiced law for two years, or have acquired a doctorate in law and practiced law for one year, or are judicial employees with a degree in law acquired at a Greek university or equivalent and correspondent or duly recognised degree acquired at a foreign university, and have served three (3) years in this position, or have the capacity of magistrate or member of the Legal Council of State;
- They are 28 years old but have not exceeded the age of 40 on December 31st of the year in which the examination is announced. (For the examination in 2022 and 2023 the maximum age is set at 45);
- They have the qualifications set out in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Article 36, and their appointment as judicial officers is not impeded by the provisions under Articles 37 and 38 of the Code of the Structure of Courts and the Status of Judicial Officers, as applicable;
Each year, the selection process includes three concurrent but separate examinations. The first one concerns the area of Administrative Justice, the second one the area of Civil/Criminal Justice and Magistrates, and the third one concerns Prosecutors.
The admission examination consists of three stages and is conducted by a six-member committee for the area of Administrative Justice, by a five-member committee for the other two areas, and is set up separately for each area.
- During the first stage, candidates in all three areas undergo a written test in one of the following foreign languages: English, French, German and Italian. Only successful candidates take part in the second stage; however, this mark shall not be taken into account in the subsequent stages;
- During the second stage, candidates in all three areas undergo three written tests on legal subjects with emphasis on practical issues, and a fourth written test that draws on general legal knowledge;
- During the final stage, in which only successful candidates from the second stage participate, candidates from each area undergo a public oral examination on the material provided for the examinations of the second stage of the respective area, as well as on European law.
The final results table includes only successful candidates who receive a final mark of at least eight (8), which is the sum of the written test GPA with an evaluation rate of 75%, and the oral test GPA, with an evaluation rate of 25%. This mark can increase by 1/10 of a point for each postgraduate degree, and, in any case, no more than two (2) degrees obtained from a Greek School of Law or equivalent or duly recognised foreign School of Law, and by 3/10 of a point for a doctoral degree obtained from a Greek School of Law or equivalent or duly recognised foreign School of Law. In case there is a doctoral degree, no points are given for a master’s degree. The members of the admission examination committee shall decide whether a postgraduate or doctoral degree can add further points to the exam result.
Finally, the School enrols candidates who are included in the final results list in order of merit, until the places mentioned in the announcement are all filled. In the event of a tie for the last place, all candidates who have tied shall be registered, as well.
