Statements

On February 27, 2026, the Kutaisi City Court upheld the civil lawsuit of Tinatin Tchelishvili, nullifying the March 31, 2025, decision of the LEPL “National Agency for Crime Prevention, Execution of Non-Custodial Sentences, and Probation" regarding the termination of the plaintiff's employment contract. By the same ruling, the defendant was ordered to pay forced idle time compensation.

The plaintiff, Tinatin Thelishvili, had been working as a mediator at the aforementioned agency in Kutaisi since October 2, 2023. Although her workplace was in Kutaisi, due to a shortage of human resources, she handled mediation cases in various regional cities—including Tchiatura, Zestaponi, and Batumi—which required frequent business trips. From October 28, 2023, Tchelishvili’s employment contract was extended several times; the final extension was signed on January 1, 2025, and was set to expire on March 31 of the same year. On March 31, the plaintiff was informed via telephone that her employment contract would no longer be extended.

Tinatin Tchelishvili performed her assigned duties conscientiously and with high qualifications, and as a result, disciplinary measures were never taken against her. Tchelishvili challenged the dismissal decision in court, linking her termination to her participation in ongoing protests in the country.

By the decision of the Kutaisi City Court on February 27, 2026, the plaintiff's lawsuit was partially upheld. The court annulled the Agency's decision to terminate the employment contract. Due to the impossibility of reinstatement to the same or an equivalent position, the defendant was ordered to pay the plaintiff appropriate compensation, as well as cover state court fees. ISFED’s attorney, Ana Chapidze, represented the plaintiff's interests in court.

In its justification for nullifying the termination, the Kutaisi City Court noted: "None of the employment contracts concluded between the parties included the expiration of the contract term as a ground for termination, which would not have created an expectation for the plaintiff that they would be dismissed on this basis. Although the Labor Code of Georgia provides for the termination of an employment contract due to expiration of the term, an individual employment contract with specific conditions was concluded between this specific employer and employee. These conditions included grounds for termination that were not explicitly stated in the law. The parties agreed specifically to these individual terms, which did not envision the expiration of the term as a ground for termination."

For context: Following the statement made by public servants on November 30, 2024, regarding the suspension of Georgia's EU accession process—as well as their exercise of the right to assembly and manifestation—a massive wave of dismissals followed. Based on this, many public servants were dismissed without professional performance reviews or any objective criteria. Legal disputes related to these events continue to this day. With the help of ISFED, some of those unlawfully dismissed have already been able to win several cases.

If you believe you were dismissed from work on political grounds, write to us: info@isfed.ge