Where do I go for legal help in Georgia?
A short directory of the channels that actually work as of September 2026: who provides a free lawyer, who takes complaints about the police, and where to check that your lawyer is real.
Context: why the old advice no longer works
Two years ago the first answer to this question was a list of human rights NGOs. That route has largely closed. After the 2024 Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence, the 2025 Georgian FARA and the amendments to grant legislation, the sector contracted sharply: the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association (GYLA), historically the main provider of free legal aid, announced a shift to crisis mode in March 2026 and wound down its general-purpose programmes, keeping only strategic litigation. According to Human Rights Watch (July 2026), of 114 organisations active in the regions in 2024, roughly 37 remained by 2025.
In parallel, on 1 July 2025 the Special Investigation Service (SIS), which independently investigated crimes committed by police officers, was abolished and its functions transferred to the Prosecutor General's Office.
The practical upshot: today's working channels are state hotlines and the private bar, not NGO walk-in clinics.
1. I need a free lawyer — who do I call?
The Legal Aid Service, hotline 1485. A state body established by the Law of Georgia on Legal Aid. The call is free, weekdays 10:00–18:00; also +995 (32) 292-00-55, info@legalaid.ge. The Tbilisi bureau is at 14 Tamar Mepe Ave.; bureaus and consultation centres operate in most regions.
What they do: oral consultations, drafting legal documents, representation in court and before administrative bodies, criminal defence.
The key limitation, rarely spelled out. In criminal proceedings a state lawyer is appointed free of charge to a suspect, defendant or convicted person. If you are the complainant or the victim — for example, you are reporting abuse of power by the police — the Legal Aid Service has no legal basis to assign you a lawyer to accompany you to the prosecutor's office. This is the most common reason applications are turned down.
If you are being detained, demand a lawyer immediately and cite 1485. The state defence counsel is obliged to attend the detainee or the court hearing.
2. Who qualifies for free state legal aid?
Two grounds: income and status.
By income: families listed in the unified database of socially vulnerable households with a rating score up to 70,000 (up to 100,000 for certain categories).
By status, regardless of income: juvenile defendants; victims of domestic violence and human trafficking; asylum seekers, refugees and holders of humanitarian status; veterans; people with disabilities; individuals in involuntary psychiatric care proceedings.
In difficult socio-economic situations the head of the service may assign a lawyer outside these categories. That is a discretionary decision, and it is worth asking for it explicitly.
3. The police or a state body violated my rights — where do I go?
Three different addresses here, and confusing them is costly.
The Public Defender's Office (Ombudsman), hotline 1481, 24/7. 6 Irakli Pagava St. (Avlabari), Tbilisi; info@ombudsman.ge; weekdays 9:00–18:00. Regional offices in Gori, Kutaisi, Batumi, Zugdidi, Telavi, Marneuli, Akhalkalaki, Ozurgeti and Mestia. The Ombudsman will not litigate your case, but has the right of unimpeded access to detainees and can formally record signs of violence and procedural breaches. For an initial record of the incident this is the safest channel.
The Prosecutor General's Office of Georgia, hotline 199. 24 Vakhtang Gorgasali St., Tbilisi; presscenter@pog.gov.ge. Since the abolition of SIS it is this office that investigates torture and abuse of power by police officers.
The MIA General Inspection — 126, gen126@mia.gov.ge. The ministry's internal oversight: disciplinary misconduct by officers.
⚠️ Do not walk into the prosecutor's office alone. A complaint filed without a Georgian-speaking lawyer will most likely either go nowhere or trigger a counter-case for disobeying the police (Art. 173 of the Code of Administrative Offences). First record the incident through 1481 and gather evidence; file afterwards.
4. I'm an asylum seeker, a refugee or a stateless person
Rights Georgia is an official UNHCR partner and one of the few NGOs whose targeted donor funding has survived. Hotline +995 (593) 111-405, tel. +995 (32) 299-88-56, office@rights.ge, 11a Akaki Gakhokidze St., Tbilisi.
They take cases of asylum seekers, refugees, stateless persons and internally displaced people: consultations, drafting complaints, full case representation, accompanying beneficiaries to state bodies. For someone without a vulnerable status it is usually consultation only — but they may refer you to a private lawyer.
5. I'm a foreigner with no qualifying status. Is there really nothing free?
Usually not: state aid is tied either to the social rating score or to a specific status. That leaves a paid lawyer — and here the thing to avoid is an unlicensed intermediary.
Check the person in the registry of the Georgian Bar Association — gba.ge, which publishes both a member registry and a registry of law firms. Association phone: +995 (32) 298-78-78. If you have a complaint about a lawyer, the ethics commission hotline is +995 (32) 2-200-262.
Typical market rates: consultation — around 150 GEL; handling an appeal — from 300–500 GEL; full case representation — from 1,500–3,000 GEL.
A practical rule: insist on a written contract and hand over money only when you sign it. A sensible sequence is to pay a fixed fee first for review of the case file and a strategy discussion, and only then commit to full representation.
6. Can I still approach human rights NGOs?
Yes — but call first. Some organisations continue to operate, the Social Justice Center among them, though mainly as research and advocacy centres rather than walk-in clinics. Their websites are often out of date: GYLA's consultation booking form, for instance, is still live even though the programme has been wound down. Trust what you hear on the phone, not what the page says.
A separate channel for Russian-speaking relocants is the Ark project (Kovcheg): it has no licensed Georgian lawyers of its own, but through its Telegram bots you can obtain, often within an hour, the contact of a local lawyer willing to work pro bono or at a reduced rate where the case is political or involves a serious rights violation.
7. How should I approach them so as not to waste time?
Prepare three things before you call: what happened and when (with dates), which documents you already hold, and what exactly you need — advice, a drafted document, or representation. State your grounds for entitlement up front: social rating, disability, refugee status, juvenile defendant.
And watch the deadlines. They are short: an expulsion decision is appealed to the court within 10 days (Art. 56 of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons); a police officer's actions are challenged under Art. 56 of the Law on Police. A missed deadline is generally not restored, and the lawyer you find the following week will have nothing left to work with.
The numbers, in one line each
| Where | Number | When |
|---|---|---|
| Legal Aid Service (free lawyer) | 1485 | weekdays 10:00–18:00 |
| Public Defender (recording a rights violation) | 1481 | 24/7 |
| Prosecutor General's Office (crimes by police) | 199 | 24/7 |
| MIA General Inspection (disciplinary misconduct) | 126 | 24/7 |
| Rights Georgia (asylum, refugees, stateless) | +995 593 111-405 | weekdays |
Sources
Law of Georgia on Legal Aid (doc_id 21604) — the status of the Service, who is entitled to free aid, types of services:
- document card: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/21604
Legal Aid Service of Georgia — contacts, hotline 1485, network of bureaus: legalaid.ge · contact page
Public Defender (Ombudsman) of Georgia — hotline 1481, regional offices: ombudsman.ge
Georgian Bar Association — registry of lawyers and law firms, ethics commission: gba.ge
Rights Georgia — UNHCR partner, free aid for vulnerable groups: rights.ge
FREELAW.GE — a directory of organisations providing free legal aid (Georgian-language interface only), built with EU and UNDP support: freelaw.ge
Human Rights Watch, 09.07.2026 — "Georgia: New Laws Devastate Independent Civic Groups": GYLA's suspension of free legal aid, the sector's contraction from 114 to roughly 37 regional organisations:
Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons (doc_id 2278806) — Art. 56 (appeal against an expulsion decision within 10 days):
- document card: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/2278806
Law of Georgia on Police (doc_id 2047533) — Art. 56 (appeal against an officer's action), Art. 57 (MIA General Inspection):
- document card: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/2047533
⚠️ The old free legal aid portal free.mylaw.ge is dead — the domain no longer resolves. The current directory is freelaw.ge. Note too that the news section on legalaid.ge has not been updated since 2023: verify phone numbers against the contact page, not against publication dates.
Disclaimer. This material is informational and does not constitute legal advice. Phone numbers, addresses and eligibility criteria change — verify on the official sites before visiting. For your specific situation, consult a lawyer.