Workplace Investigations
Contributing Editors
Workplace investigations are growing in number, size and complexity. Employers are under greater scrutiny as of the importance of ESG rises. Regulated industries such as finance, healthcare and legal face additional hurdles, but public scrutiny of businesses and how they treat their people across the board has never been higher. Conducting a fair and thorough workplace investigation is therefore critical to the optimal operation, governance and legal exposure of every business.
IEL’s Guide to Workplace Investigations examines key issues that organisations need to consider as they initiate, conduct and conclude investigations in 29 major jurisdictions around the world.
Learn more about the response taken in specific countries or build your own report to compare approaches taken around the world.
Choose countries
Choose questions
Choose the questions you would like answering, or choose all for the full picture.
14. When does privilege attach to investigation materials?
14. When does privilege attach to investigation materials?
Greece
Greece
- at Karatzas & Partners
- at Karatzas & Partners
- at Karatzas & Partners
- at Karatzas & Partners
Regarding L.4990/2022 for whistleblowers’ procedures, many categories of privilege may occur during an investigation, such as: attorney-client privilege; doctor-patient privilege; and court or other proceedings’ privilege deemed as classified. L.4990/2022 provides that its provisions do not affect any of these privileges and these privileges supersede[6].
Privilege may also be attached to investigation materials in investigations relating to workplace harassment and violence incidents; however, since L.4808/2021 does not offer a specific provision and criminal proceedings may also commence, the matter of privilege must be examined ad hoc.
[6] Law 4990/2022 art.5 par.2(b) and par.2(c)
15. Does the employee under investigation have a right to be accompanied or have legal representation during the investigation?
15. Does the employee under investigation have a right to be accompanied or have legal representation during the investigation?
Greece
Greece
- at Karatzas & Partners
- at Karatzas & Partners
- at Karatzas & Partners
- at Karatzas & Partners
Greek law does not specifically regulate the right to be accompanied or have legal representation during internal investigations for private-sector employees.
However, the right to legal representation established in article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights could be interpreted to cover cases such as internal investigations in the workplace. In addition, according to article 136 of Civil Servant Code, the employee under investigation has the right to be represented by an attorney at law. There is an additional argument regarding private-sector employees and their right to legal representation, by applying this provision by analogy.