Reporting Unlawful Data Processing in Georgia
April 1, 2024
Mediation in Georgia
April 4, 2024
An effective court system is important for high-quality life and doing business. This article explores the topic of filing a lawsuit in Georgia (Country). You will read general information about Georgian law systems. Then you will find out what steps you need to take, how long the decision-making process takes, and what are other important considerations. At the end, check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Overview Of The Georgian Court System
There are four main courts in Georgia and they are divided by the types of cases under their jurisdiction:
- Civil Court decides on civil cases, usually between private persons (individuals and businesses).
- Administrative Court decides on administrative cases, usually between private persons (individuals and businesses) and government bodies.
- Criminal Court decides on criminal cases, between private persons (individuals and businesses) and the prosecution.
- Constitutional Court decides on human rights and other constitutional matters.
Civil, administrative, and criminal courts have three instances. Thus, a decision of a lower court can then be appealed against. The constitutional court has only one instance and their decision is not subject to an appeal.
Legal Representation
When it comes to legal representation, being represented by a licensed attorney is mandatory in all criminal cases as well as in second and third instances of civil and administrative courts. Otherwise, you don’t have to be represented nor does your representative need to be a licensed lawyer.
However, you need to keep in mind that filings and hearings are in Georgian language. Evidence should also be submitted in Georgian. This means that a representative with good knowledge of the Georgian language is required.
Furthermore, while this article provides information on the procedures involved in filing a lawsuit in Georgia, it’s recommended that a professional handles this.
You can find a list of all licensed attorneys in the Members Registry of the Georgian Bar Association.
Legal Costs
Legal costs (officially known as “Costs of Trial”) is a concept defined under Article 37 of the Civil Procedure Code of Georgia. It is divided into Court Costs and Extra-Judicial Costs.
Court Costs
Court Costs include the state fees and costs associated with the case hearing.
The state fee is paid prior to filing a lawsuit and is reimbursed by the losing party.
Its amount depends on the type of case, the instance in which the lawsuit is filed, and whether it’s filed by an individual or a legal entity. Depending on these, as of March 12th, 2024, the state fee can be anything from 50 GEL to 8,000 GEL. While this seems much, usually, filing in the first instance court costs from 100 GEL to 3,000 GEL.
In exceptional cases, the claimant may be exempt from the payment of the state fee.
Extra-Judicial Costs
Extra-Judicial Costs include the fees paid to the legal representative, the costs incurred for procuring evidence, and other necessary costs.
Fees paid to the legal representative can also be subject to reimbursement by the losing party. However, the upper cap on this is 4% of the disputed amount.
Filing Procedure
Filing a lawsuit is a relatively simple process. You need to download the relevant court form; fill out the relevant personal data of the parties; and indicate your claims and legal justification as well as the evidence.
Once this part is completed, you need to print the lawsuit and attach the evidence and proof of payment of the state fee.
The lawsuit and the supporting documents then need to be filed in the relevant court. For instance, lawsuits falling within the jurisdiction of the Tbilisi City Court need to be filed in David Aghmashenebeli Alley N64.
When visiting the court, you need to take one copy of the lawsuit (all originals) for the court and 1 copy for each respondent.
The court will then complete a formal review of the lawsuit. When this is completed, you need to send the copy of the lawsuit approved by the court to the respondent. Thus, knowing the exact address (as well as identification information of the respondent) is imperative.
Duration Of Litigation
While the relevant procedural rules provide for deadlines and limitations, courts (and parties) sometimes exceed their time limits. Rescheduling hearings is also common.
Furthermore, the number of lawsuits filed in courts is also high. Specifically, a report published by the Georgian Bar Association in 2023 shows that:
- 116,310 civil and 21,394 administrative cases were initiated in 2020
- 148,436 civil and 24,828 administrative cases were initiated in 2021
Due to these reasons, it often takes months for the first hearing to be scheduled and it could take even years for a dispute to be resolved.
Non-profit organization Georgian Court Watch has reported that according to the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice, the resolution times according to the courts and instances are as follows:
|
First Instance |
Second Instance |
Third Instance |
|
|
Criminal Cases |
126 days |
104 days |
221 days |
|
Civil Cases |
433 days |
211 days |
297 days |
|
Administrative Cases |
440 days |
253 days |
387 days |
Enforcement Of A Court Decision
The losing party has the option to enforce the court decision voluntarily. However, the National Bureau of Enforcement completes the enforcement in case of stubborn losing parties.
Notably, non-enforcement of a court decision/order is a criminal offense.
Alternatives To Litigation
There are alternatives to litigation. The most common means of dispute resolution (other than litigation) are mediation and arbitration.
Curious about what mediation and arbitration are and how they work in Georgia? Read our articles on “Mediation in Georgia” and “Arbitration in Georgia” and decide what works best for you.
Do you want to resolve the dispute through negotiations?
Read our article on “Mediation in Georgia”.
