Jaba Tsitsuashvili

Attorney

Memberships

The California and DC Bars

Jaba Tsitsuashvili is an attorney at the Institute for Justice. He litigates in federal courts across the country to scale back and eliminate civil forfeiture, abusive fines and fees, and qualified immunity.

Jaba’s work focuses on Fourth Amendment protections against unlawful searches and seizures; the due process rights of people accused of civil or criminal offenses; and the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of excessive fines.

As part of IJ’s Project on Immunity and Accountability, he also litigates and writes amicus briefs on issues of qualified immunity, prosecutorial immunity, Bivens liability, and related doctrines that shield police and other government actors from accountability for constitutional violations.

Before joining IJ, Jaba litigated immigrants’ due process and First Amendment rights and prisoners’ religious liberty and disability rights. For his work on behalf of detained migrants, he was a recipient of the ACLU of Southern California’s 2019 Access to Justice Award.

Jaba graduated from New York University School of Law and the University of California at San Diego. While at NYU Law, he interned for Judge John G. Koeltl (U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York); the U.S. Department of Justice (Civil Division, Southern District of New York); and the Asociación Civil por la Igualdad y la Justicia (Buenos Aires, Argentina). He also taught basic constitutional and criminal law to young people through the High School Law Institute.

Jaba's Cases

Fines and Fees | Private Property

New York Permit Fines

Joe Corsini keeps a pigeon coop on the roof of his home, like many other New Yorkers. The city’s Department of Buildings saddled him with thousands of dollars in fines for not having a license…

Clients

Fines and Fees | Private Property

New Orleans Ankle Monitors

Judges must be impartial when deciding to deprive a person of his or her property. Unfortunately, one judge in New Orleans has been ordering individuals to wear an ankle monitor from a company in which…

4th Amendment Project | Other Property Rights Abuses | Private Property

Landowners sue to stop warrantless searches

Tennessee Wildlife officials were caught putting cameras on Terry Rainwaters’ property, ignoring his “No Trespassing” signs. Terry and another rural Tennessee property owner are joining forces with IJ to fight back against the “open fields…

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Jaba's Amicus Briefs

Rios v. Redding

Rios v. Redding

10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

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Jaba's News, Articles & Publications

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