ABSTRACT
Greece is one of the few European countries that has not yet succumbed to the sirens of the model of constitutional justice described by Hans Kelsen before the Second World War and adopted by most countries in its aftermath. During the past five years, Greece has been undergoing a serious economic crisis which has put to test its legal, political and social institutions. This chapter focuses mainly on the case law of a single Court – the Council of State – to examine thoroughly the course of its judgments and the nuances of its legal reasoning. It expresses that from the attitude of submission towards crisis-led legislative initiatives, it has recently crossed the path of reaction to the legislator's choices, hence to the crisis itself. The Court has deepened its control in substantive matters, especially in view of protecting socio-economic rights, but has hesitated to extend it to procedural matters, such as the review of acts of legislative content.
