Monetizing one's own name, image and likeness is a widespread practice in world sport, but in Georgia no separate statute governs it. The model formed in American college sport, which treats an athlete's name, image and likeness as a distinct bundle of rights tied to eligibility rules, has no application here — the US-style NIL regime simply has no force in Georgian law. What a Georgian athlete actually holds is the general machinery of the Civil Code: the name right, protection against unauthorized use of identity, damages for wrongful conduct, and a limitation period for claiming compensation. On this page we explain how these instruments work together.
The Name Right — Every Natural Person's Base Asset
Article 17 of the Civil Code gives every natural person the right to a name, which includes the first name and the surname. This right is the foundation of an athlete's commercial identity: it is the name that a brand pays to associate itself with. A name may be changed — this requires the person's reasoned application, examined by the appropriate organ in the established procedure. Importantly, a change of name is not a ground for terminating or altering the rights and obligations acquired under the earlier name: an athlete who changes surname is neither released from contract obligations nor stripped of recognition. The same norm obliges the person to take the necessary measures to warn creditors and debtors about the change of name — a rule that reaches sponsorship relationships directly, because a change in the personal data stated in an agreement requires informing the partner.
The Ban on Unauthorized Use and Image Consent
Under the Civil Code's personality provisions, a person whose right to bear a name is infringed, or whose interests are harmed by unauthorized use of the name, may demand that the infringer cease the activity or refrain from it. A person may also protect, through the court and in the manner established by law, honour, dignity, the secrecy of private life, personal inviolability or business reputation from violation. For sport, the image norm is especially significant: the protection claim arises also when a person's image — photograph, film, video and the like — is published without consent. At the same time, the law sets exceptions to the consent requirement: consent is not needed when the photo or video shoot is connected with the person's public recognition, the position held, demands of justice or the police, scientific, educational or cultural aims, when the shoot occurred in a public situation, or when the person received remuneration for posing. A brand campaign using an athlete's face does not fall within these exceptions — commercial use always requires consent. This is the line that separates a stadium photograph taken in a public setting from the same photograph placed in an advertisement: the first may be lawful without asking, the second never is.
Damages and the Limitation Period
When unauthorized use is culpable, the athlete has the full remedial path of damages. Under the general tort norm of the Civil Code — Article 992 — a person who causes damage to another by wrongful, intentional or negligent conduct must compensate that damage. In the personality-rights context this means the athlete may claim both property loss, including the profit the infringer derived, and, where the violation is culpable, compensation for moral harm, which may be sought independently of property compensation. Finally, there is the time factor: under Article 1008, the limitation period for claiming compensation for damage caused by a tort is three years from the moment the injured party learned of the damage and of the person obliged to compensate it. In a campaign context, this means a three-year window from discovery of the unauthorized advertisement. For monetization itself the emphasis is different: commercial use of name and image is driven by contract — the agreement defines in which campaigns, on which territory and for which duration the persona may be used. The law does not regulate the content of the deal; it fixes only that use without agreement is prohibited and compensable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below we answer the questions that arise most often around the protection and monetization of personal assets.
Is there a separate Georgian statute on athletes' name, image and likeness rights?
No — the analogue of the American college-sport model does not exist in Georgia; these relationships are governed by the general norms of civil legislation.
Can a brand use an athlete's photo in advertising without consent?
No — a commercial campaign requires consent; the statutory exceptions cover public recognition, position, educational and cultural aims and public situations, not advertising.
What can be claimed for unauthorized use?
Cessation of the activity or abstention from it and, where the violation is culpable, compensation of damage — including the infringer's profit and moral harm.
What is the limitation period for a damages claim?
Three years from the moment the injured party learned of the damage and of the person obliged to compensate it.
Do rights change when the surname changes?
No — a change of name is not a ground for terminating or altering rights and obligations acquired under the earlier name; creditors and debtors must simply be warned.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The Legal.ge team assists athletes, their managers and brands in putting personal assets on a legal footing. We check whether a campaign rests on proper consent, draft name- and image-use agreements, assess cases of unauthorized use, and represent clients in damages claims — with the limitation period in mind. Contact us for a consultation: we will assess your situation, define your instruments, and protect your interests at every stage of negotiation and dispute.