Forum Strategy — Where to Litigate
In an international dispute the first strategic question is not the content of the law but the forum: which country's court will be competent. The Georgian Law on Private International Law regulates this question fully: the principle of international competence (Article 8), the cases of competence (Article 9), exclusive competence (Article 10), agreements of the parties on competence — prorogation (Article 18), parallel proceedings (Article 19) and provisional measures (Article 20).
The Principle and Cases of Competence
Georgian courts have international competence where the defendant has a place of residence, a seat or a habitual residence in Georgia (Article 8). In addition, competence exists where: the defendants are several persons and one of them has a place of residence in Georgia; the place of performance of the obligations defined by the contract is Georgia; the action concerns damage caused by a wrongful or comparable act and the act or the damage occurred in Georgia; the dispute concerns a branch of an enterprise whose seat is in Georgia; the case concerns the establishment of paternity or alimony and the child's or the recipient's place of residence or habitual residence is in Georgia; or the subject of the action is succession and the deceased had at death a place of residence, habitual residence or estate in Georgia (Article 9).
Exclusive Competence
Georgian courts have exclusive international competence only over actions concerning: immovable property located in Georgia; the validity or dissolution of decisions of a legal person or its organ where the seat of the legal person or its organ is in Georgia; the registration of legal persons by Georgian courts or other organs; the registration of a patent, trademark or other right, where that registration or the application for it took place in Georgia; and enforcement measures, where their request or execution took place in Georgia (Article 10). Agreements of the parties on competence over these spheres are void.
Prorogation, Parallel Proceedings and Provisional Measures
The parties may agree on the international competence of a Georgian court even where under the law it is not competent; the agreement is concluded in writing or orally with written confirmation, and in international commercial relations in a form corresponding to international trade usages. Competence also arises where the defendant, without objection, agrees to participate in the proceedings — even where the defendant is represented by an advocate, provided the judge informed the defendant of the possibility of objecting and this was recorded in the protocol. The parties may agree on the competence of a foreign court where one of them has a place of residence abroad (Article 18).
The rules on parallel proceedings regulate the duplication of a dispute (Article 19): where proceedings on the same claim between the same parties are pending in Georgia and abroad and the claim was first subject to a foreign court, the Georgian court suspends the proceedings — except where it is possible that the foreign court will not decide within the relevant time or the decision will not be recognized in Georgia. A case is not accepted where a decision of a foreign court exists that may be recognized in Georgia. For the securing of a claim, a Georgian court is competent if the provisional measures are to be executed in Georgia or if Georgian courts have international competence (Article 20).
In planning the forum an experienced practitioner first checks exclusive competence: where the case concerns immovable property in Georgia or a right registered here, an agreement on another forum is void and the debate is futile. The defendant's connections are then fixed — residence, place of performance, place of damage — and only afterwards is it decided whether a prorogation agreement is needed. Tacit competence also rests on what is recorded in the protocol: the judge's notification of the possibility of objecting, and its fixation, determine whether the defendant's participation counts as consent.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is a Georgian court competent?
Mainly where the defendant has a place of residence, seat or habitual residence in Georgia; also on connections of place of performance, place of damage, branch, alimony and succession.
Over which cases are only Georgian courts competent?
Immovable property in Georgia, decisions and registration of Georgian legal persons, rights registered here, and enforcement measures to be executed here.
Can the parties agree on competence?
Yes — the parties may agree on a Georgian court and, under certain conditions, on a foreign court; an agreement on exclusive competence is void.
What happens with parallel cases?
Where the claim was first subject to a foreign court, the Georgian court suspends the proceedings; the existence of a recognizable foreign decision precludes acceptance altogether.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The choice of forum often predetermines the outcome of a dispute: procedures, deadlines and enforcement prospects change together with the forum. On the Legal.ge platform you can find an experienced international procedural and private law lawyer who will help you assess competence, prepare the agreement clause and manage the risks of parallel proceedings. Choose a specialist and choose the forum strategically.