The Legal Regime of Emergency Situations
The legal regime of emergencies begins with classification: by the nature of its origin, an incident or emergency is divided into natural and technological (caused by human factor) types. Taking into account the consequences, the response forces and material resources needed, an emergency may be of local or national significance. This classification determines who manages the response and what resources are engaged.
An emergency is local where its management is possible with the forces of one subject of the national system or of neighbouring municipalities. It is national where management by those forces is impossible, where its influence may spread over most of the country's territory, where it threatens the national treasury, cultural heritage or rare species, where it causes significant damage to the economy or environment, where its elimination is prolonged, or where international assistance is needed. The Government assigns the national category on the minister's submission.
Management of the Response
The management of the response to an emergency is carried out at strategic (political), operational and tactical levels. At the strategic level, the response to a national emergency is managed by the Prime Minister or a person authorised by him, supported with recommendations by the National Security Council. The division into levels ensures fast and accountable distribution of decisions.
Duties of Citizens and Business
A natural or legal person who receives information about an incident or emergency is obliged to immediately send a notification via the unified telephone number 112 and, where possible, to conduct primary response with its own forces. A notification received on the unified number is transmitted to the corresponding responding body of the national system.
During the response, mandatory operations may be imposed on natural and legal persons — but only where the forces and resources of the system's subjects are insufficient. Expenses incurred and damage sustained in performing duties within mandatory operations are reimbursed to persons under the procedure established by legislation. This guarantee balances public interest and private property.
Civil Protection Measures
The basic measures for protecting the population from an emergency are evacuation and placement in shelters, fire-fighting, engineering, chemical, radiological, medical and biological protection, and psychological assistance. The personnel of a vital facility must be protected in a shelter. Underground structures of the metro, caves, bunkers and tunnels, as well as suitable underground floors of buildings, are used as shelters.
The informational component is likewise established by law: informing and warning the population and organising evacuation are the tasks of the responsible services, with the private sector engaged as partner — informing employees, providing data on facilities and synchronising its own communication channels.
For business this means dual planning: an evacuation plan for staff, communication channels, insurance of facilities, and readiness for mandatory operations. The right to compensation for damage is guaranteed by law, but documentary fixation is the precondition of any claim.
The law on emergencies is conceived as a systemic document of management: it determines not only the response forces but the rules of their interaction — the flow of information from the unified number to the responding bodies, the transfer of decisions between levels, and the mobilisation of resources. In this system the role of the private sector is twofold: a source of risk on one hand, a resource engaged through mandatory operations on the other.
The assignment of the national category is a resource decision: with it change the level of management, the scale of engaged forces and the question of international assistance. For a municipality it means additional forces; for business, the real risk of mandatory operations, plannable in advance.
At the planning level the law makes societal readiness a joint task of state and private sector: risk assessment, training, communication channels and the updating of measures. For companies with critical infrastructure the requirements are higher still: protecting the personnel of a vital facility in a shelter is a statutory duty.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know whether a situation is local or national?
By manageability: if the forces of one subject or neighbouring municipalities suffice, it is local; otherwise — or if the influence covers most of the country — it is national, and the Government assigns the category.
Who manages a national emergency?
At the strategic level — the Prime Minister or an authorised person, supported by the National Security Council; the response is divided into three levels.
Can business be engaged by force?
Yes — within mandatory operations, if the system's forces are insufficient; but expenses and damage are reimbursed.
Where do I report upon receiving information?
To the unified number 112 — immediately; where possible, primary response is also conducted with one's own forces.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The Legal.ge team assists business and the population on legal issues related to emergencies: compensation for damage, the legality of mandatory operations, and the conduct of disputes. Contact us — timely legal engagement reduces both damage and the prospect of disputes.