Court Orders Lukoil Georgia to Return Misappropriated Fuel

Lukoil Georgia cut off fuel access for at least several hundred customers in 2021. These customers had purchased fuel in advance from the intermediary company Unigroup, located at Lukoil Georgia's central office. The purchases were also recorded through electronic cabinets on Lukoil-Georgia's official website. After refusing to supply fuel, Lukoil Georgia completely removed the customers’ cabinets and data from its website. According to the oil company, the contract with Unigroup was terminated due to multi-million-dollar debts.

Lukoil Georgia denied responsibility and directed customers to the nearly bankrupt company, Unigroup.

Georgian News filed a lawsuit against Lukoil Georgia instead of Unigroup.

Judge Tamar Chikhladze fully supported the plaintiff's position and based her decision on several fundamental legal principles.

Transformation of Property Rights: According to the court's explanation, displaying fuel in a consumer's personal electronic cabinet legally means its acquisition and the transfer of ownership rights. From that point, the oil company ceased to be the owner of the product. It became merely its custodian, without the authority to refuse the transfer of ownership or to seize the product for its own interests.

Protection of a Good Faith (Bona Fide) Purchaser: According to the court's explanation, consumers are bona fide purchasers. They were not required to and could not have known about the internal financial dispute between Lukoil and Unigroup. Consumers represent the weaker market participants, and their interests must be safeguarded.

Reasonable Expectation: Because fuel accounting was managed on Lukoil's official website, the company itself created conditions that gave customers a reasonable belief that Lukoil was responsible for fulfilling the obligation.

Lukoil Georgia challenged the Tbilisi City Court's landmark decision by appealing to the Tbilisi Court of Appeal, but the higher court refused to review the case. Consequently, the original decision from the Tbilisi City Court became final and was immediately enforced.

“This decision creates a significant legal precedent. It confirms that large companies cannot use internal business disputes as an excuse to appropriate products that have already been sold to consumers,” says Vladimer Kutateladze, a lawyer of Georgian News

He also stated that although the three-year contractual period was complied with in this dispute, theoretically, the victims could continue their legal battle over an even longer period.

As Lukoil Georgia appropriated fuel belonging to a third party without any direct contractual ties to the consumers, the act is defined as a classic instance of unjust enrichment.

According to the legislation of Georgia and the Supreme Court’s practice:

There is no specific timeframe for such disputes, meaning they are subject to the general 10-year statute of limitations.

This legal nuance gives additional hope to all those victims who were unable to apply to court since 2021,” the lawyer notes.

With the National Bureau of Enforcement's intervention, Lukoil Georgia enforced the ruling of the Tbilisi City Court today.