Challenging a building permit issued for a neighbouring project: what to do under Georgian law

What to do

1. Key point: the permit is NOT suspended by filing an appeal or a lawsuit (Construction Activities Code, Art. 116). It may be suspended by the authority or the court upon a motion, where there is a reasonable doubt about its legality or significant harm (Construction Activities Code, Art. 116). A motion to the court may be filed before the lawsuit, and the decision is made within 3 days (Administrative Procedure Code, Art. 29). Do not delay: the developer’s legitimate trust does not save an act that materially violates the rights of other persons (General Administrative Code, Art. 60¹).
2. Documents: a copy of the permit is obtained by a request for public information, and the reply is due within 10 days (General Administrative Code, Art. 40); an interested person has the right to inspect the application and the documentation (Construction Activities Code, Art. 110). Record the date you received the copy, because the deadlines run from it.
3. Right to challenge: the plaintiff must show a direct and immediate (individual) harm to their right or interest (Administrative Procedure Code, Art. 22), such as insolation, setbacks, height, or greenery, and not a general “public interest”. Procedure: the neighbour whose interest is directly affected by the construction must be involved in the proceedings (Construction Activities Code, Art. 110); an information board must be posted 3 calendar days before the start of the proceedings (Construction Activities Code, Art. 110).
4. Where and when: the complaint is considered by the issuing authority (the higher-level official within it); for an act of the head of an agency, by the higher authority (General Administrative Code, Art. 178); a complaint can also go directly to court (General Administrative Code, Art. 178); the complaint deadline is 1 month from publication or official familiarisation with the act (General Administrative Code, Art. 180); a complaint filed late for a valid reason may be restored (General Administrative Code, Art. 180); the lawsuit deadline is 1 month from familiarisation with the act or with the decision on the complaint (Administrative Procedure Code, Art. 22).
5. Grounds: an act is invalid if it contradicts the law or materially violates the procedure (General Administrative Code, Art. 60¹), for example, exceeding the urban-planning parameters, failure to involve neighbours, or defects in the expert review.
6. Where to apply: the municipality (architecture service), for the complaint; district (city) court, for the lawsuit and the motion for suspension.
7. Evidence: copy of the permit and of the project with the date of receipt, photos of the information board and works, insolation and setback calculations, expert opinion, extracts from the Public Registry for the apartments.
8. Traps: expecting that a complaint or lawsuit will stop the construction by itself; filing “on behalf of residents” without an individual harm for each plaintiff; confusing this with illegal construction without a permit (which is handled by construction supervision) and with a refusal of your own permit.

Be sure to check

• complaint or lawsuit does not suspend the permit: a motion for suspension is needed (can be filed before the lawsuit)
• one-month deadlines for the complaint and lawsuit and when they start (familiarisation with the act)
• how to obtain a copy of the permit (public information, 10 days) and prove direct harm for the status of an interested person
• where to file (issuing authority / higher authority or court) and the grounds for invalidity