Levan Makharashvili
Litigation Lawyer — Criminal & Civil Law
18+ years of courtroom experience. Managing Partner at DLG & Case, Chairperson of the Jury Trial Working Group at the Georgian Bar Association, and a trainer of Georgia’s next generation of trial advocates.
Levan is a member of the Georgian Bar Association and a full individual member of the European Association of Lawyers (AEA-EAL, Brussels). He is a certified trainer in Jury Trial Advocacy Skills, having trained with U.S. judges and trial lawyers through programs organized by the U.S. Embassy in Georgia and the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
About Levan Makharashvili
Litigation lawyer with 18+ years of experience in criminal and civil law, combining courtroom advocacy with public-sector legal leadership and academic training.
Professional Experience
- 2022 – PresentChairperson, Jury Trial Working Group — Georgian Bar Association
- 2020 – PresentTrainer — Georgian Bar Association (Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Juvenile Justice)
- 2016 – PresentVisiting Lecturer — National University of Georgia (SEU)
- 2016 – 2018Legal Project Manager — Center for Competition
- 2012 – PresentManaging Partner — DLG & Case, Law Firm
- 2012 – 2014Associate Professor — East European University
- 2011 – 2012Head of the Department of Procedural Supervision over Investigation — Office of the Prosecutor General of Georgia
- 2009 – 2011Head of the Legal Department — Office of the Prosecutor General of Georgia
- 2006 – 2009Prosecutor, Department on Procedural Supervision on Investigation — Office of the Prosecutor General of Georgia
Education
- PhD in Law (Candidate) — Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, 2006 – Present
- Master’s Degree in Law — Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, 2000 – 2005
Memberships & Recognition
- Member, Georgian Bar Association (General Specialization) — since 2012
- Full Individual Member, European Association of Lawyers (AEA-EAL), Brussels — since 2024
- The Order of Honour — awarded by the President of Georgia, 2012
- Certified: Training of Trainers – Jury Trial Advocacy Skills (INL / U.S. Embassy Georgia), 2023 & 2024
Languages
- Georgian — native
- English — C1 (proficient)
- Russian — C2 (proficient)
Practice Areas
Focused primarily on criminal defense and criminal procedure, with continued capability across civil litigation.
Criminal Defense
Representation at every stage of criminal proceedings — investigation, pre-trial motions, trial, and appeal — drawing on direct experience inside the Office of the Prosecutor General.
Jury Trial Advocacy
Certified trainer in jury trial skills; applies advanced case-preparation, witness examination, and closing-argument technique developed alongside U.S. judges and trial lawyers.
Juvenile Justice
Defense and procedural guidance in cases involving minors, informed by ongoing training delivered to fellow members of the Georgian Bar Association.
White-Collar & Financial Crime
Defense in complex financial, asset, and money-laundering allegations, including cross-border evidentiary disputes.
Civil Litigation
Civil and administrative disputes, contract matters, and general litigation support for individuals and businesses.
International Legal Cooperation
Mutual legal assistance, extradition, and transfer-of-proceedings matters, drawing on former leadership of international cooperation at the Prosecutor General’s Office.
Experience & Notable Matters
A selection of the professional experience behind every case Levan takes on. Specific case studies are added with client consent.
18 Years Inside the System
Levan began his career as an intern and prosecutor at the Office of the Prosecutor General of Georgia (2006–2012), rising to Head of the Legal Department and then Head of the Department of Procedural Supervision over Investigation — overseeing procedural supervision across the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Special Foreign Intelligence Service, Ministry of Defense, and Ministry of Corrections. That vantage point now informs every defense he mounts.
Giorgi Bachiashvili — Financial Crime Defense
Serving as Georgian defense counsel to Giorgi Bachiashvili, founder of the investment firm Mission Gate, in a high-profile cryptocurrency financial-crime prosecution that has drawn sustained domestic and international media coverage.
Training the Next Generation
As Chairperson of the Georgian Bar Association’s Jury Trial Working Group and a certified Bar Association trainer, Levan shapes how Georgian lawyers approach criminal procedure, juvenile justice, and jury trial advocacy nationwide.
International Standards
Study visits and trial-advocacy training in the United States (Florida, 2022 & 2023) alongside American judges and public defenders, applied directly to case strategy and courtroom technique in Georgia.
Detailed case studies and client references are available on request, subject to confidentiality and client consent.
Case Law Library
A working reference of European Court of Human Rights judgments concerning Georgia, drawn from the Court’s public HUDOC database.
This library is provided as general legal reference material only — it is not a record of cases litigated by this office. Full text of every judgment is available on the Court’s official HUDOC site.
Contact
Consultations available in Georgian, English, and Russian.
Makharashvili Law Office
Mtskheta Street, N13A, Office N2
0179, Tbilisi, Georgia
Phone
+995 599 35 15 15 (Mobile)
+995 32 243 48 74 (Office)
Bar & Professional Profile
Georgian Bar Association — Member since 2012
European Association of Lawyers (AEA–EAL) — Full Individual Member