On October 30, at 11:00 AM, the Tbilisi City Court will begin hearings in the case of Ayn Rand Center Georgia. The court is set to assess the legality of a decision by the Government Administration that barred the Center from using a previously received grant on the grounds of incompatibility with “national interests.” Judge Valeriane Pilishvili is presiding over the case.

The Center received the refusal on April 8, 2026, based on amendments made to the Law on Grants. The Administration failed to substantiate or explain specifically why a project involving lectures, book clubs, and informal gatherings on Ayn Rand’s philosophy and the ideas of personal freedom and responsibility runs counter to Georgia’s national interests. 

The organization challenged the decision in court and filed a motion for an injunction that would have allowed it to continue the project. The court denied the motion, effectively stripping the Center of its ability to operate. As a result, hundreds of citizens have had their access to the Center’s educational programs restricted. Notably, the court grossly violated procedural deadlines for ruling on this matter, notifying the plaintiff of the outcome only after a delay of several months.

This case demonstrates how Georgian Dream uses the Law on Grants to control ideas. The ruling regime is reverting to Soviet practices: it arbitrarily decides which ideas are compatible with “national interests,” while denying an independent organization the right to operate without providing a legal justification. The court must now assess the legality of that decision.

The interests of Ayn Rand Center Georgia are represented in court by Georgia’s Future Academy, which will pursue all relevant domestic and international legal mechanisms to defend the organization’s freedom of association and expression.