Court of Appeals makes verdict favourable for Rustavi 2
By Messenger Staff
Tuesday, December 1
The Court of Appeals has fully annulled Judge Tamaz Urtmelize’s decision on the appointment of temporary managers in one of the most influential private broadcasters in Georgia - Rustavi 2 - Tamta Muradashvili, a lawyer representing the company, has stated.
According to her, the court also partly satisfied Rustavi 2’s request to revoke the ruling made on property seizure. In particular, the ban on renting has been invalidated.
“The TV company has regained the right of renting for three months, which is very important”, she said.
The TV company leaders also regained the right to approve annual accounts.
As for the complaint of the plaintiff, the Court of Appeals, like the City Court, did not satisfy Qibar Khalvashi’s complaint on banning the use of theRustavi 2 logo.
The ex-owner of Rustavi 2, Georgian businessman Qibar Khalvashi, announced via his attorneys that he had initiated a lawsuit against the present shareholders of the company.
At a press conference at the Radisson Blu Iveria Hotel in Tbilisi on August 5, Khalvashi's lawyers claimed their client purchased the broadcasting company for $7 million USD in 2004 but was forced under strong pressure of the Saakashvili-led government and ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili to concede his property to the new owner in December 2006.
Judge Urtmelidze from Tbilisi City Court subsequently froze the assets of Rustavi 2.
The channel leadership claimed that the verdict was sponsored by the current Georgian Government as Rustavi 2 was frequently critical of the Georgian Dream coalition’s rule.
On November 2 this year, the Constitutional Court of Georgia ruled that no legal enforcements could begin regarding the Rustavi 2 case before the case covered all legal instances in Georgia.
On November 3, Tbilisi City Court delivered its verdict – 100 percent of his shares would be returned to former owner Khalvashi.
On November 6, a Tbilisi City Court judge appointed two temporary managers to Rustavi 2. The reason for this was because the current managers, Gvaramia among them, had connections with the previous state leadership that might have caused a threat to company property.
On November 7 , in order to ensure the media outlet remained functioning as normal, temporary managers Davit Dvali and Revaz Sakevarishvili offered the current owners of the broadcaster to name "any” person to whom interim managers would grant the power of attorney with full authority.
On November 7, the United States Embassy to Georgia, the European Union Delegation to Georgia and heads of the diplomatic corps in Georgia said they were concerned by the appointment of temporary leaders to Rustavi 2.
On November 8, the Rustavi 2 leadership turned down the offer, saying they did not intend to cooperate with the former owners.
