Start with duty, record and medical causation
Improper disclosure may engage privacy, professional, civil or criminal rules depending on data, authority, intent and consequence.
Which data left the permitted context, who accessed it, what lawful basis or consent existed and where was it sent?
Independent expertise should identify the applicable specialty standard and limitations; it should not be asked to declare criminal guilt.
The unaltered clinical record matters first
Access and export logs, consent and privacy notices, recipients, emails or messaging data, device records and incident response.
Clinical chronology
Reconstruct condition, decisions, interventions and response.
Individual duty
Distinguish practitioner, clinic, agency and executive roles.
Causation
Test competing medical explanations and legally assessed harm.
Articles that may enter the qualification
Disclosure of information on private life or personal data
Covers specified unlawful obtaining, storage, use or disclosure that satisfies the article's consequence and circumstance requirements; privacy concern alone does not settle criminal liability.
Read full Article 157 text on this pageDisclosure of secrets of personal life
May be relevant where a secret of personal life is unlawfully obtained, stored, used or disclosed; the nature of the information, conduct, medium, role and intent require proof.
Read full Article 157¹ text on this pageRead the relevant Criminal Code provisions
The panel below reproduces the available official English wording for convenient reading. Check the current Georgian text and the exact article part before relying on it, because later amendments may not yet appear in translation.
Article 157Disclosure of information on private life or of personal data+
1. Unlawful obtaining, storage, use, dissemination of or otherwise making available information on private life or personal data, which has resulted in considerable damage, –
shall be punished by a fine or corrective labour for up to two years, or by imprisonment for up to three years.
2. Unlawful use and/or dissemination of information on private life or of personal data through a piece of work disseminated in a certain way, through internet, including social network, mass media or other public appearance, which has resulted in considerable damage, –
shall be punished by a fine or corrective labour for up to two years, or by imprisonment for up to four years.
3. The act provided for in paragraph 1 or 2 of this article committed:
a) for mercenary purposes;
b) repeatedly, –
shall be punished by a fine or imprisonment for a term of up to five years.
4. The act under paragraphs 1, 2 or 3 of this article committed by a person, who, due to his/her official position, professional activities or other circumstances, was obliged to keep this information or data confidential, or who committed the above act using his/her official position, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of four to seven years, with or without deprivation of the right to hold an office or to carry out activities for up to three years.
Note:
1. A person shall not incur criminal liability for a crime (obtaining, storage) under paragraph 1 of this article if he/she has submitted the obtained/stored information specified in paragraph 1 of this article to investigative authorities and communicated information on any other committed/anticipated criminal act in this manner.
2. For committing an act under this article, a legal person shall be punished by a fine, with deprivation of the right to carry out activities, or by liquidation and a fine.
The consolidated official source is listed in the source section at the end of this guide.
Article 157¹Disclosure of secrets of personal life+
1. Unlawful obtaining, storage, use, dissemination of or otherwise making available secrets of personal life, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of four to seven years.
2. Unlawful use and/or dissemination of secrets of personal life through a piece of work disseminated in a certain way, through internet, including social network, mass media or other public appearance, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of five to eight years.
3. The act provided for in paragraph 1 or 2 of this article committed:
a) for mercenary purposes;
b) repeatedly, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of six to nine years.
4. The act under paragraphs 1, 2 or 3 of this article committed by a person, who, due to his/her official position, professional activities or other circumstances, was obliged to keep this secret confidential, or who committed the above act using his/her official position, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of seven to ten years.
Note:
1. A person shall not incur criminal liability for a crime (obtaining, storage) under paragraph 1 of this article if he/she has submitted the obtained/stored information specified in paragraph 1 of this article to investigative authorities and communicated information on any other committed/anticipated criminal act in this manner.
2. For committing an act under this article, a legal person shall be punished by deprivation of the right to carry out activities, or by liquidation and a fine.
The consolidated official source is listed in the source section at the end of this guide.
Stop further disclosure, preserve logs and separate necessary notification from speculative accusation.
Primary sources for this guide
Before acting, compare this guide with the current Georgian text and the exact document served in the case. The official English translation may not include the latest amendment.
Official consolidated Criminal Code — current text & PDF↗︎Law on Health Care↗︎Law on Patient Rights↗︎