Georgian Businessman Irakli Rukhadze and Partners Ordered to pay over $170 million in Compensation by English Court

Georgian businessman Irakli Rukhadze and his business partners, Benjamin Marson and Igor Alekseev, have been ordered by the Appeals Chamber of the Court of England and Wales to pay over $170 million in compensation to Revoker and Recovery Partners.

The judgment upholds the previous ruling from July 2022 which found that the defendants had committed a "commercial conspiracy" leading to the loss of a "billion dollar project" involving Badri Patarkatsishvili's multibillion-dollar assets. The project, intended to recover and return the assets to Patarkatsishvili's family after his death, was managed by Salford Capital Partners International, where Rukhadze worked as a high-level manager. Following Patarkatsishvili's death, the defendants deliberately removed Salford and established Hunnewell Partners to appropriate the project and Patarkatsishvili's assets. The court found that Rukhadze, Marson, and Alekseev completed the project through Hunnewell Partners and accumulated significant financial income and assets. In addition to the imposed compensation, part of Rukhadze's assets were confiscated as part of the judgment.

Rukhadze is a prominent figure in Georgian business, owning and managing a number of large companies, including Liberty Bank, Rustavi Metallurgical Plant, Georgian Media Production Group, and a 22% share in Heidelbergcement, among others. The imposed compensation will undoubtedly have a significant impact on his financial standing, and according to Forbes, Rukhadze has already begun paying the required amount. This high-profile case serves as a warning to others in the business world that commercial conspiracies and breaches of fiduciary duty will not be tolerated by the courts, and those who engage in such activities will be held accountable.