Anonymous defamation on social media or Telegram: what to do under Georgian law

What to do

1. ⏰ The clock runs while you look for the author: a claim must be filed within 100 days from when you learned of the statement (Art. 19 of the law) (Law of Georgia on Freedom of Speech and Expression, Art. 18). A private person means a natural or legal person, so a company is protected under the same law and within the same deadline (Law on Freedom of Speech and Expression, Art. 1). The general limitation period of the Civil Code of Georgia (CC) does not apply here.
2. Whom to sue: the claim must name the defendant and give their address (Civil Procedure Code of Georgia (CPC), Art. 178); a claim “against an unknown person” will not be accepted, so you must first identify the author. Platform: an improper defendant is anyone who merely distributed the content technically, such as the platform (Law on Freedom of Speech and Expression, Art. 6), except a person who explicitly and directly endorsed the statement (Art. 6). The administrator-editor and known reposters who approved the post are defendants. An opinion is absolutely protected, so you can sue only over a false fact (Art. 4). The plaintiff must be unambiguously recognisable in the post; hints at an indefinite group are not the subject of a claim (Art. 6).
3. Secure the evidence immediately: screenshots with the URL and date, a notarial inspection; evidence can be secured through the court, including before a claim is filed (CPC, Art. 109). With the claim, request securing of the claim: an order prohibiting the defendant from certain actions, such as continuing publications (CPC, Art. 198), on the ground that without it the harm would be irreparable and direct (CPC, Art. 191).
4. Identifying the account owner: user data can be obtained from the provider through a court only by the prosecutor in a criminal case (Criminal Procedure Code of Georgia (CrPC), Art. 136). Defamation is NOT a crime in Georgia (there is no criminal article), so no criminal case for defamation will be opened. The police act only where there are signs of a crime: disseminating information about private life through social networks, causing significant harm, is a crime (Criminal Code of Georgia (CrC), Art. 157); systematic unwanted electronic communication causing suffering (stalking) is a crime (CrC, Art. 151¹).
5. Outcome of the claim: the court orders publication of a message about its decision (Law on Freedom of Speech and Expression, Art. 17); if that is not enough, compensation for pecuniary and non-pecuniary harm (Art. 17). Removal can also be requested by a complaint to the platform under its rules.
6. Where to apply: the district court; the police or prosecutor where there are signs of a crime.
7. Evidence: screenshots with the URL and username, a notarial inspection; anything that links the account to a specific person.
8. Pitfalls: waiting for the author to be found and missing the deadline; suing Meta or Telegram; filing a police report “for defamation”.

Be sure to check

• a 100-day deadline to sue from when you learned of the statement; anonymity does not extend it
• a platform that merely distributes a post technically is an improper defendant; sue the author or editor, or the person who explicitly endorsed it (repost)
• a civil claim requires the defendant's name and address; disclosing the account owner through the provider can be done only by the prosecutor in a criminal case (disclosure of private life, stalking)
• secure the evidence immediately (notarially or through the court before the claim) and request securing of the claim, i.e. a ban on publications