A Greek court began hearings Wednesday on an appeal by Germany against a decision to confiscate its assets in Greece to compensate victims of the Nazi occupation, a court source said.
Lawyers for the two parties submitted written proposals during the hearing, the source said.
The court is expected to decide within a month whether a Greek court can take action against another state without authorization from the justice ministry.
In October 1997, a court in Livadia ordered Berlin to pay more than 50 million euros (42 million dollars) in compensation to 295 descendants of 218 residents of the village of Distomo who were massacred by the Nazis in 1944.
Germany appealed to the Greek Supreme Court, claiming that the ruling was not within Greek jurisprudence. The appeal was rejected.
In July, a Greek bailiff began the process of seizing assets at the German Archeological Institute and the Goethe Institute in Athens.
The process was suspended until the new appeal has been heard -- ATHENS (AFP)
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