Judge Levan Murusidze of the Tbilisi Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal filed by civil activist Lasha Songulia in the so-called “sidewalk standing case.” Songulia had challenged the decision of the Tbilisi City Court, which terminated the administrative proceedings and transferred the case to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia (MIA) for further action due to the possible existence of elements of a criminal offence.

The MIA alleged that on 17 December 2025 Songulia created an obstruction to pedestrian movement on the sidewalk near the Parliament of Georgia. On 8 January 2026, the Tbilisi City Court concluded that the act might contain elements of a criminal offence and transferred the case to the MIA.

The continuation of the case under criminal law is linked to legislative amendments introduced by the ruling party, Georgian Dream, to the Code of Administrative Offences. According to these amendments, the repeated obstruction of movement during an assembly or demonstration may give rise to criminal liability. Lasha Songulia had previously been sanctioned for allegedly “artificially blocking a roadway” — initially he was fined 5,000 GEL and later subjected to five days of administrative detention.

Before the Court of Appeals, Songulia also requested the suspension of the proceedings pending a decision of the Constitutional Court of Georgia and asked the appellate court to submit a constitutional referral to the Constitutional Court. However, the Court of Appeals dismissed these motions and upheld the decision of the court of first instance.