Ravivo tells High Court his appointment can remain professional despite prior ties

State Comptroller-elect Michael Ravivo, who also serves as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s personal lawyer, submitted his position to the High Court of Justice in response to petitions seeking to disqualify his appointment.

In his filing, Ravivo argued that Israeli law allows people who are honest, upright, and independent to perform public duties faithfully and objectively even if they previously had ties to the appointing or supervised bodies. He said this is supported by the safeguards in the Basic Law and the State Comptroller Law, which are intended to ensure the comptroller’s independence.

The petitioners are challenging Ravivo’s selection on the grounds of those prior connections. Ravivo’s response asks the court to reject the claims and allow the appointment to stand.