Levin says judicial selection panel will hold preliminary meeting next month after delay

Jeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter

The Judicial Selection Committee meets for the first time in over 18 months in Jerusalem, on November 16, 2023. (GPO)
The Judicial Selection Committee meets for the first time in over 18 months in Jerusalem, on November 16, 2023. (GPO)

Justice Minister Yariv Levin informs members of the Judicial Selection Committee that the panel will convene on January 11 for a preliminary discussion on appointing two new justices to the Supreme Court, as well as electing a new president for Israel’s top court.

There will not, however, be a vote on candidates in the meeting. Eight further meetings of the committee have been scheduled for February, March and April.

Previous Supreme Court president Esther Hayut retired in October but due to Levin’s lengthy refusal to convene the Judicial Selection Committee a replacement has not been appointed.

Justice Uzi Vogelman became acting president, but he is also scheduled to retire in 2024, meaning there will be two empty seats on the court.

Levin wishes to abandon the seniority system whereby the justice with the greatest number of years on the court is the de facto choice for president, as part of his efforts to give the government greater control over the court.

The coalition has the guaranteed votes of only three members on the panel – Levin himself, Settlements and National Projects Minister Orit Strock, and Otzma Yehudit MK Yitzhak Kroizer – a situation that has reinforced Levin’s reluctance to convene the committee.

Appointments to the lower courts, where there are dozens of open seats on the benches, require a majority of five to four, while appointments to the Supreme Court need a majority of seven.

Pressure due to petitions to the High Court against Levin’s position forced his hand to agree to convene the committee, which he finally did last month.

The committee was supposed to have met last week, but the session was postponed due to scheduled votes on the supplementary state budget in Knesset.

The January meeting will also discuss objections raised by Strock to some of the 14 temporary judges appointed to the lower courts in November.

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