Appealing a government body's decision or a municipal act: what to do under Georgian law

What to do

1. Classify: an act, a refusal, inaction or a normative act; check whether a special law applies. General rule: without a single administrative complaint under the General Administrative Code (GAC), a court will not accept a claim against the body unless the law expressly provides otherwise (Administrative Procedure Code (APC), Art. 2).
2. Complaint deadlines: a complaint must be filed within 1 month of the publication of the act or of its official familiarisation, unless the law provides otherwise (GAC, Art. 180); a missed complaint deadline is restored in case of force majeure or another valid reason (GAC, Art. 180). Silence: a decision on an application must be made within 1 month of its submission, unless the law provides otherwise (GAC, Art. 100); a late issue of an act is treated as a refusal and is challenged in the same way (GAC, Art. 177); no deadline applies to challenging such a refusal (GAC, Art. 180). Do not confuse: the one-year period that applies where the appeal procedure was not explained concerns only JUDICIAL acts, not acts of a body (APC, Art. 12).
3. Grounds for annulment: an act is void if it contradicts the law or if the requirements for its preparation or issue are materially breached (GAC, Art. 60); a written individual act must contain a written justification, i.e. the factual and legal grounds (GAC, Art. 53).
4. Complaint: the complaint is reviewed by the body that issued the act (its superior official); for an act of a head of a body, by the superior body (GAC, Art. 178); a decision on the complaint must be made within 1 month (GAC, Art. 183); as a general rule, filing a complaint suspends the act, subject to exceptions (GAC, Art. 184).
5. Court: a claim against an individual act must be filed within 1 month of familiarisation with the act or the decision on the complaint, or of the expiry of the period for reviewing it; against a normative act, within 3 months of the harm being caused (APC, Art. 22); a claim to oblige a body to issue an act, within 1 month of receiving the refusal (APC, Art. 23); in a claim to annul an act, the burden of proof lies with the body (APC, Art. 17). Claims: invalidity of the act, an order to issue an act or perform an action, compensation for harm.
6. Public information: public information is issued immediately or no later than 10 days (GAC, Art. 40); a refusal or silence is subject to complaint, then to court.
7. Where to apply: the body that issued the act or its superior body; then the district (city) court.
8. Evidence: the application bearing a registration mark, the act and proof of the date it was delivered, correspondence, documents proving the right being claimed.
9. Pitfalls: the period runs from official familiarisation with the act, so keep the envelope or notice; a special law may change both the deadline and the addressee of the complaint, so check it first.

Be sure to check

• mandatory pre-trial administrative complaint and the exceptions set by law
• 1 month to file the complaint, 1 month for its review and 1 month to sue
• who reviews the complaint
• what to ask the court for and how to challenge the body's silence