ORBELIANI LAW REVIEW

Formal Constitutional Review from the Georgian Legal Perspective

Paata Javakhishvili — 2025-03-11

Constitutional review stands as one of the most crucial mechanisms among state authorities’ activities, serving to uphold constitutional supremacy, protect human rights, and resolve competency disputes between state bodies. To fulfill
these essential functions, constitutional courts examine the conformity of normative acts with the constitution. This examination encompasses not only the assessment of substantive compatibility with fundamental law, but also verification of compliance with constitutionally established procedures for the adoption and implementation of normative acts. This authority, recognized
in legal doctrine as “formal constitutional review,” is indispensable to the Constitutional Court’s role as a comprehensive mechanism for protecting constitutional supremacy and fundamental rights. The 2017 comprehensive amendments to the Constitution of Georgia sparked a significant debate within Georgian academic circles regarding the Constitutional Court’s authority to conduct formal constitutional review. This scholarly discourse emerged from specific normative foundations: while the previous constitutional framework permitted expansion of the Constitutional Court’s powers through organic law, the reformed Constitution
now exhaustively defines these powers. However, this strictly normative interpretation raises several critical questions. First, should the Constitutional Court’s powers be subject to such a narrow normative interpretation? Second, how does the Constitutional Court perceive its own competence? Third, what legal foundations for formal constitutional review exist within constitutional legislation and the Court’s jurisprudence? This article aims to systematically address these fundamental questions.

Senior Policy in Polish Legislation on the Example of Local Government Seniors Councils (Taking into Account the Amendment of 2023)

Ewa Maria Włodyka — 2025-03-11

Senior policy is mentioned in the area of public administration most frequently in the context of the organization of health services. While treating seniors as public sector beneficiaries, it is easy to forget about the values that people defined as seniors may offer. In my study, I posit a thesis (H1) that Poland is a country that has a planned senior policy in the form of Seniors Councils at the
local government level. The supporting thesis (H2) is a statement concerning the benefits of involving seniors at the level of local government units as public administrators at local and regional levels. An additional research question is: do top-down regulations at the central level contradict the idea of grassroots public participation? The study also shows the changes and consequences of
normative acts regulating the existence of senior citizens’ councils at each of the three levels of local government in Poland.
The study falls within the field of social sciences. In addition to research methods appropriate to the discipline of political science and administration, the author used participant observation as a person directly involved in the establishment of consultative and advisory bodies in local government, such as senior citizens’ councils.

The Separation of Competition Law Enforcement Powers Between Competition and Regulatory Authorities in Georgia

Givi Adamia — 2025-03-11

The presented work is focused on researching the essence of public enforcement of Georgia’s competition legislation, its mechanisms, and the issue of separating its enforcement competencies between the respective state authorities.
In 2020, the Georgian Law on Competition underwent comprehensive reform. This reform introduced a unique approach to the enforcement of said Law. In particular, the Competition and Consumer Protection Agency and the National
Regulatory Authorities were defined as executive bodies of the Georgian Law on Competition. Furthermore, due to these reforms, the law now envisages many procedures and methods to separate the enforcement competencies between these state bodies. However, the relevant procedural provisions do not provide a straightforward solution to all the issues related to the separation
of competencies. In the last five years, it has been seen that such gaps have led to significant issues in practice. Therefore, the sole purpose of the presented paper is to study these problems and offer relevant scientific solutions.

Dispute Adjudication Board: Innovation in Georgia’s Alternative Dispute Resolution System

Otar Machaidze — 2025-03-11

This article examines the Dispute Adjudication Board (DAB) as an innovative mechanism within Georgia’s alternative dispute resolution (ADR) system. As large-scale infrastructure projects proliferate globally, effective and timely dispute resolution becomes essential. While ADR mechanisms like arbitration and mediation are well-established, the DAB has emerged as a crucial tool,
especially in projects backed by international financial institutions. Despite its growing importance, the DAB remains underregulated in Georgia, leading to challenges in its application. The study explores the evolution of the DAB, tracing its roots from the United
States in the 1970s to its current international recognition, particularly within the FIDIC contract framework. It highlights how Georgia has begun integrating DABs into its legal landscape, despite the absence of a comprehensive regulatory framework. Through a comparative analysis of international and Georgian practices, the paper identifies key distinctions between the DAB and other ADR mechanisms, emphasizing the unique role of the DAB as a pre-arbitration step that ensures the continuation of project work while disputes are resolved. The research also addresses the enforceability of DAB decisions, examining contractual obligations and the challenges of ensuring compliance. By analyzing case law and arbitration practices, both globally and within Georgia, the
paper underscores the need for clearer guidelines, and the potential for judicial and arbitration support to solidify the DAB’s role in the Georgian legal system. In conclusion, the paper advocates for the broader adoption of DABs in Georgia, recommending the development of a legal framework aligned with international standards to enhance the effectiveness of this dispute resolution
method. This will not only benefit the country’s infrastructure development, but also strengthen its position in the global market by aligning with international best practices.

Criminal Offence and Health Condition Information as Special Categories of Data, and the Legal Aspects of Processing in Labor Relations under GDPR and Georgian Law

Simoni Takashvili — 2025-03-11

Criminal offence and health condition information as special categories of data present significant legal challenges in labor relations. The new Personal Data Protection Law outlines the general regulations regarding criminal offence and health condition information as special categories of personal data. The principles governing the processing of this personal information are very specific,
and depend on several factors, especially in employment contexts. Employers have access to private data related to candidates during the pre-contractual phase, and to employees during the contractual relationship. This access carries a high risk of breaching the principles of processing special categories of personal data. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the processing of criminal offence and health condition information as special categories of data by the employer. This issue is analyzed within the context of the pre-contractual phase and the termination of the employment contract. All aspects are reviewed under both GDPR and Georgian legislation. At the conclusion of this article, some suggestions and recommendations are offered which might be relevant for Georgian legal practice.

The Process of Criminalization and an Economic Analysis of Legal Norms

Levan Tsakadze — 2025-03-11

The economics of crime is still an unknown subject for the Georgian legal community. This paper represents a practical first systematic attempt within the legal space to offer mechanisms for calculating the financial value of crime. While the theory of rational choice and cost-benefit analysis of crime may be new to the Georgian legal field, they are very necessary and relevant for the Georgian legal space because the calculation of the productivity of prohibitions in the process of criminalizing actions is not conducted based on an economic model. This, in turn, imposes an unimaginable burden on the state and taxpayers, as well as more obligations on the country’s budget than it can handle. It is important to determine the economic value of the law alongside the economic value of crime. The subsequent activities of crime, prosecution, and judicial bodies are linked to the process of criminalization and represent significant factors to consider in the context of the economic value of the legal norm. This research actively examines what it costs to investigate crimes in the investigative bodies of Georgia and what indicators are used to calculate specific economic costs. The paper offers the reader an economic formula for crime investigation and, based on this, discusses how appropriate the relationship between economic interests and the interests of justice is in order to protect the national interests of the country.

Human Trafficking as a Global Problem and the Efficacy of NAPTIP in Tackling Human Trafficking in Nigeria

Adeola Olufunke Kehinde — 2025-03-11

This paper evaluates the gravity of the human trafficking problem in Nigeria and examines the approaches implemented by the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP). NAPTIP, an agency of the Federal Government, was established under the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act of 2003 to
combat human trafficking. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the action plan of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP) in Nigeria’s fight against human trafficking, with a particular focus on safeguarding the rights of victims and the environment. The paper additionally investigates the efficacy of NAPTIP’s nationwide initiatives thus far in addressing the issue of human trafficking in Nigeria. The research findings indicate that NAPTIP has proven to be inadequate in tackling issues of human rights violations, consequently contributing to a rise in the nationwide occurrence of human trafficking. To mitigate, if not eradicate, human trafficking, the Nigerian government and NAPTIP must undertake decisive measures. The National Orientation Agency, non-governmental organizations, and other relevant stakeholders, must raise societal awareness about the problem of human trafficking to properly inform Nigerians about its
implications on the environment and the country. To reintegrate human trafficking victims into society, there should be prospects for employment