The lawyers of Zurab “Girchi” Japaridze, a member of the Coalition for Change, left the courtroom in protest.

They did so after once again requesting a change of courtroom, a request the judge denied once more.

“You are not a judge,” Nika Gvaramia told judge Irakli Shvangiradze.

In response to the lawyers leaving the courtroom, Judge Shvangiradze stated that he would consider their action a sign of disrespect to the court, to which Gvaramia replied that if he wanted, he could fine them.

“Leave the courtroom,” said the judge.

Gvaramia replied: “Oh, I will leave — but you’ll be the one forced to leave,” he retorted.

Afterward, the judge asked Zurab Japaridze for his position. Japaridze responded that he wanted a lawyer to be appointed for him.

“They left me two motions that need to be submitted, and I need a lawyer,” Japaridze stated.

The judge then left the courtroom to deliberate on whether the hearing would continue without legal counsel or if a public defender would be appointed for Japaridze.