The present fourth edition of the General Principles has become necessary in order for the manual to be updated based on the latest legislation as well as modern theory and jurisprudence. The structure of the content has remained unchanged, but in several cases new subsections have been included in the relevant paragraphs, such as the constitutional principle of proportionality, the reform of the EU legal order with the Lisbon Treaty, the impact of medically assisted reproduction methods on the birth of a natural person and the establishment of kinship, corruption as a ground for nullifying legal acts, electronic commerce, etc.

At the same time, the book has been fully updated with the legislative changes that have occurred in the law of legal entities (see Law 4055/2012), the law of kinship (Law 3305/2005), the law of personal data (see Laws 3471/2006 and 3625/2007), consumer protection law (see Law 3587/2007), the Greek Nationality Code (see Law 3838/2010), and the special regulation on joint ventures (see Law 4072/2012). Of course, with the opportunity of the new edition - and in light of the latest scientific findings - some of my opinions or formulations have been reconsidered or revised.