Our blog post published last year, about problems related to property rights in Mestia, was referring specifically to the issues that arise during the legalization of property owned through “traditional ownership.” This blog is about the costs of land registration and banned registra

“Transparency International – Georgia” recently published a blog post about the new regulations concerning tax lien. We have since learned that the aforementioned amendments to the Georgian Tax Code and the law “On Enforcement Proceedings” were passed in violation of the general procedure for preparation and adoption of normative acts. The initial version of the draft amendments did not cover the aforementioned issues and the explanatory note (which, according to the law, must explain the rationale behind the amendments) did not provide an explanation for the new tax lien regulations. The explanatory note only mentioned that the draft law contained new regulations for lottery-related issues. Apparently, these amendments were deemed necessary after the Georgian State acquired a 70-percent share in Georgian Lottery Company.

There has been significant discussion about the lack of judiciary independence in Georgia. Non-governmental and international organizations, as well as representative of other countries have recently put a particular emphasis on the importance of an independent judiciary as a key pillar of democracy. A weak judiciary, along with a weak parliament, is a threat for possible abuse of power by the executive branch of the government. Reports by various international organizations frequently mention the selective enforcement of law and call for the application of Georgia’s supreme principles. In this blog, we are describing a particular case in detail, about seven persons arrested during manifestation in Batumi on the 22nd of May. Court hearings related to this case continue to date and represent an example of the complex problems in the judiciary.