Venice Commission Seeks to Intervene in ECHR Case Against Georgia's Foreign Agents Law
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
The Venice Commission, the Council of Europe's advisory body on constitutional matters, is seeking permission to intervene as a third party in the case of GYLA and Others v. Georgia, currently pending before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The case was brought by over 100 Georgian civil society and media organizations challenging the country's controversial Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence, commonly referred to as the Foreign Agents Law.
In a previous opinion, the Venice Commission strongly recommended that Georgia repeal the law, warning that it could have a chilling effect on civil society and freedom of expression. Now, the Commission is taking the unusual step of requesting to intervene in the legal proceedings.
"The [Venice Commission] seeking to intervene as a third party shows that the Commission views this law as a serious threat to the rule of law," said Saba Brachveli, a lawyer with the Civil Society Foundation, one of the applicant organizations. "Such a move is very rare," he told Civil.ge.
"The Foreign Agents Law" was adopted in the spring of 2024 following widespread protests. It is the second such attempt to pass the legislation after a similar bill was withdrawn in 2023. The law requires organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from foreign sources to register as entities "pursuing the interests of a foreign power." Critics have called it the "Russian Law," arguing that it is intended to suppress dissent and weaken civil society, while the ruling Georgian Dream party insists the law is necessary to promote transparency.
Although not yet strictly enforced, the law remains active. Georgian Dream passed a new foreign agents law in 2025, which it claims mirrors the United States' Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). However, concerns persist among civil society groups and international observers.
The ECHR complaint was filed after Georgia's Constitutional Court declined to temporarily suspend the law, though it agreed to consider the case. The complaint, submitted on October 21 to the Strasbourg-based court, was signed by 120 civil society organizations, 16 media outlets, and four individuals.
In the filing, the applicants argue that even without active enforcement, the mere existence of the law interferes with their rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. They cite violations of Article 10 on freedom of expression, Article 11 on freedom of assembly and association, Article 13 on the right to an effective remedy, Article 14 on the prohibition of discrimination, and Article 18 concerning the misuse of restrictions on rights.
