Fraud Victim Advocacy — the Scope of Advocacy Activity
A person defrauded usually stands outside the proceedings at exactly the moment when legal support matters most: the investigation is running, the paper trail is scattered across banks and counterparties, and the victim has no clear picture of which authority to approach. This page explains what an advocate may do for you under the Georgian Law on Advocacy Activity. Article 2 of that law defines what advocacy activity includes, and Article 4 sets out the advocate's rights — the toolkit used in your case. These two provisions are the legal foundation on which fraud victim protection actually rests: everything promised here is anchored in them, and anything beyond their scope is honestly identified as governed by other legislation.
What Advocacy Activity Covers in Your Case
Article 2 defines advocacy activity broadly, and every element of that list applies to a fraud victim. An advocate may give legal advice to the person who has approached him or her for assistance — that is, to you as the client. The advocate represents the client in constitutional, criminal, civil or administrative cases before courts, in arbitration, and before detention and investigation bodies. In addition, the advocate prepares legal documents addressed to third parties and submits any documentation in the client's name, and provides legal assistance that is not connected with representation before a third party. In a fraud case this means you can retain one and the same professional as both adviser and representative — from the first consultation, through the investigation, to any court stage that follows, whether the dispute is pursued in criminal, civil or administrative track.
The Advocate's Rights When Protecting a Victim's Interests
Article 4 equips the advocate with the instruments that an effective fraud case requires. Under subparagraph "a" of the first part, the advocate is entitled to represent and defend the client, the client's rights and freedoms before constitutional, supreme and common courts, arbitration, investigation bodies, and other physical and legal persons. Subparagraph "b" of the first part is particularly important in fraud matters: for the purpose of protecting the client's interests, the advocate demands and receives, in the procedure established by legislation, the documents, certificates and other factual data needed to carry out advocacy activity. The second part of the article adds a standalone guarantee: the advocate's activity may be restricted only by law — no permission from a state body or a private person is required for how the advocate advances your interests.