Enforceable Acts: Which Decisions Trigger Recovery
Enforcement of a damage compensation claim begins by identifying the act subject to execution. The law on enforcement proceedings names them: final court decisions, rulings and determinations in civil and administrative cases; a final guilty verdict in a criminal case imposing a fine or confiscation of property as a penalty on an individual or legal entity; a guilty verdict imposing on the person the obligation to pay compensation to the victim — for an injured party this last one matters most; decisions converted for immediate enforcement; and other acts provided by law.
In a damage case this means that once the court has awarded compensation, the creditor already holds an enforceable act and the next step is moving into the enforcement machinery. Compensation imposed by a guilty verdict is likewise subject to enforcement under the procedure established by the same law.
The Enforcement Writ and the Start of Proceedings
Enforcement proceedings are not allowed without an enforcement writ, except for the exceptional acts listed by law. The writ is issued on the decision subject to enforcement, and it is issued to the creditor. The National Bureau of Enforcement starts proceedings on the basis of the creditor's written application for compulsory enforcement and the enforcement writ; the writ, with a certified copy of the decision attached, is submitted to the territorial organ according to the whereabouts of the debtor or the debtor's property.
The moment of commencement has a financial effect too: where the decision provides for growth of the claim through interest or a late-payment charge, accrual of interest and/or the charge on the principal ceases from the day the enforcement proceedings begin, except for the exceptions established by law. The Bureau informs the debtor of the start of enforcement no later than 5 days after commencement. That deadline is a practical anchor — where no notice has arrived, the trace of the procedure should be checked exactly there.
The Debtor's Protection: Property That Cannot Be Levied
Enforcement is not absolute — the law protects the debtor's subsistence base. The following are not subject to seizure: personal or household items necessary for the debtor's professional activity, life and household economy; four weeks of food, fuel and lighting means for the debtor, the family and co-residents, or the money needed to procure them; limited small livestock and one milk cow, or at the debtor's choice two pigs, a sheep or a goat, if they are necessary for feeding, together with a three-month stock of fodder; for those engaged in agriculture, the tools, livestock, fertilizer and produce needed for the farm through to the next harvest; for those earning income through physical or mental labour, the items necessary for that activity. State targeted assistance is likewise protected, as is the property of a member of a family registered in the database of socially vulnerable families, except property used to secure the claim. The subsistence minimum is determined by legislation, and disputes over exemption from levy are examined in court.
The creditor also needs to know the exceptions to the writ requirement: a court ruling obtained within the enforcement proceedings and subject to enforcement is executed without a writ — on the basis of a ruling that has entered legal force or one subject to a private appeal; and cessation of enforcement without a writ is possible on the basis of a final court decision. This means that issues arising in the course of the process are not suspended while a separate writ is awaited.
The territoriality rule has an exception as well: when applying to the Bureau to start enforcement, observing the principle of territoriality is not mandatory where the creditor is an individual, a private-law legal entity, or an association of persons without forming a legal entity. For an individual — including a recipient of damage compensation — this is a meaningful simplification, since the application is made in one form and establishing the debtor's exact whereabouts is no longer a precondition.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is needed to start enforcement?
The creditor's written application and the enforcement writ; the writ is issued to the creditor on the enforceable decision, with a certified copy attached.
When does interest stop accruing?
Interest and late charges on the principal cease from the day the enforcement proceedings begin, subject to statutory exceptions.
What property does the law protect?
Subsistence items: those necessary for professional activity, four weeks of food, limited livestock — one milk cow or two pigs, a sheep or goat — and a three-month fodder stock.
When is the debtor notified?
No later than 5 days from the start of enforcement; a missing notice is a signal to check the procedure.
How We Help on Legal.ge
Enforcement lawyers on Legal.ge accompany creditors from writ to execution — preparing the application, choosing the territorial organ, monitoring the procedure — and defend debtors with the catalogue of property immune from seizure. Contact us to build the plan for your position.