Introduction
In a first-instance judgment,1 the Supreme Court of
Cyprus examined the meaning of 'recognisance' under the
Civil Procedure Law (Section 9(2) of Cap 6). Pursuant to this
provision, before making an interim order on an ex parte
basis, the court requires that the person applying for it enters
into a recognisance (translated in Greek as a 'personal
undertaking'), with or without a surety (or sureties) as the
court thinks fit, as security for being answerable in damages to
the person against whom the order is sought. The Supreme Court was
called to examine this question in the context of an application
filed by the respondents against whom the ex parte interim
order was issued, seeking a leave of the court to apply for a
prerogative writ aiming to cancel the first-instance order.
