Political Defamation — Protecting a Public Figure
The honour and dignity of a politician or public officeholder are under constant informational pressure: a false accusation goes viral within hours and reaches as far as elections, careers or decisions. The Georgian Civil Code gives a public figure judicial protection too — honour, dignity and business reputation are protected goods. This page explains how a political-defamation dispute is built: what differs in the position of a public figure, what he demands from the court, and where the boundary of freedom of expression lies.
The Legal Basis — What the Code Protects
The legal basis consists of three provisions. Article 18 of the Civil Code governs personal non-property rights: a person is entitled, through the court and in the manner established by law, to protect his honour, dignity, privacy of personal life, personal inviolability or business reputation from infringement. Where infringing statements have been disseminated through mass information media, their refutation must take place through the same media; where such data are contained in a document issued by an organization, the document must be replaced and interested persons informed. The injured person is also entitled to publish a reply in the same media.
Refutation, Reply and Correction of Documents
Under the same provision, the protection of this good operates regardless of the infringer's fault; where the violation results from a culpable act, the person may claim compensation for damage, including in the form of the profit the infringer obtained, and also compensation for non-pecuniary (moral) damage — independently of pecuniary damage. Where authorship or name is misused, the person may demand that the infringer cease the act; publication of a person's image without consent is likewise recognized as an infringement, subject to enumerated exceptions.