Board Advisory

Director Duties & Liabilities

What does the duty standard require?

Good faith, prudent-person care and the belief in the best interest.

Is reliance on a professional possible?

Yes — unless the member has information that makes the reliance unjustifiable.

When does the general meeting approve a transaction?

When its value exceeds 50% of the assets; at the 10% threshold an auditor examines it.

Who may challenge?

Within 18 months of the transaction — a governing member, a 5%+ shareholder or a group.

And a transaction of 10%-50%?

Verified by an auditor or certified accountant.

5 min·9 Jan 2026

The Standard of Directors' Duties in Georgian Law

The codified standard of directors' duties in the current Georgian corpus is established by the Securities Market Law: the triad of good faith, prudent-person care and best interest, together with the connected conflict-of-interest regime and income transparency, belongs precisely to that law. At the same time, the general director regime for private companies is governed by the current Entrepreneurs Law; this page names the mandatory standard for accountable enterprises and notes that for other companies it remains a persuasive analogue.

The Triad of Duties

Members of the governing body of an accountable enterprise must, in exercising their rights and duties, act in good faith, exercise the care of an ordinary prudent person in a like position under like circumstances, and act in the belief that their action is in the best interests of the enterprise and the holders of its securities. These elements together form Georgia's business-judgment baseline: good faith excludes the primacy of self-interest, the care standard sets a qualified expectation, and the best-interest test fixes the direction of the decision. Members who supported a decision resulting in a breach of these duties bear joint liability for the damage — abstaining with a negative vote does not absolve.

Reliance and Its Limits

In determining the grounds and scope of liability, account is taken that a member may rely on reports and conclusions, including financial ones, prepared by an auditor, legal adviser, employee or another person who, in the member's good-faith view, is a professional in the relevant matter. At the same time, an action is not considered in good faith where the member has, or is obliged to have, information that makes such reliance unjustifiable. A holder of the enterprise's securities, in turn, has the right to bring a claim for breach of these duties.

The Conflict-of-Interest Regime

A high-risk zone of a director's decisions is the conflict of interest. A transaction falls under a special regime where the interested person is a governing-body member or a shareholder holding 20% or more of the total votes; the only exception is a transaction between the enterprise and its 100% subsidiary or 100% shareholder. The interested person must immediately notify the supervisory board in writing of the fact, nature and volume of the interest, and is prohibited from voting. A transaction worth 10% or more of the enterprise's assets is examined by an auditor or certified accountant; one exceeding 50% is approved only by the general meeting. Upon approval, the enterprise immediately notifies the National Bank and publishes the information within 5 days. The consequences of violation: compensation of damage and return of the personal benefit, joint liability of governing members, and a court claim for invalidation of the transaction within 18 months of its conclusion — a right also held by a shareholder owning 5% or more of the votes.