On November 29, 2022, the Constitutional Court of Georgia held a public discussion with the support of the USAID Rule of Law Program about important decisions made by the court. 

The event forms part of the Constitutional Court’s public outreach strategy and provides a platform for engagement by the court with ordinary citizens and the legal community. The event also provided a practical opportunity for judges of the common courts, lawyers and the academia to discuss the Constitutional Court’s jurisprudence in a less formal environment.

The topic selected for discussion on this occasion was the decision of the Constitutional Court which was issued following a submission by the Tetritskaro District Court relating to the constitutionality of two disputed legal provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.

In particular, the provision that obliges the accused to tell only the truth if she/he decides to testify in court was disputed before the Constitutional Court. Furthermore, the author of the submission, Judge Badri Niparishvili, submitted that the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code, which limited the powers of the judge to raise questions without the agreement of the parties, were unconstitutional in that they infringed on the parties’ the right to a fair trial. Specifically, on December 28, 2021 the Constitutional Court found that the trial judge was not entitled to raise questions without the agreement of the parties, even if the question itself had been phrased in a form that did not impact the principle of equality/competition between the parties or the impartiality of the judge. Accordingly, the court considered the application of the provision to be incompatible with the interests of justice and the right to a fair trial.

As for the accused's right to remain silent, the Constitutional Court pointed out that the accused may naturally have an interest in misrepresenting facts to the court. Accordingly, a provision in the code that imposes liability for perjury does not conflict with the constitutional privilege against self-incrimination and is, therefore, not unconstitutional.

The event was opened by the USAID Rule of Law Program Chief of Party, Giorgi Chkheidze, and the Deputy Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Georgia, Manana Kobakhidze. The Constitutional Court Judge reporting on the case, Teimuraz Tughushi, also spoke about the decision. 

Questions from the attendees representing the local NGOs, Georgian Bar and academia highlighted the legal consequences and challenges that lawyers would face in practice following this decision. The discussion involved a review of the challenges from both a continental and Anglo-American legal perspective, which allowed the participants to develop a deeper understanding of the judges’ reasoning for the decision.

Similar events covering the latest important decisions of the Constitutional Court will be held in the future with the support of the USAID Rule of Law Program.