Israel’s High Court of Justice on Thursday began hearing seven petitions seeking to nullify the appointment of attorney Michael Ravilo as state comptroller. The case is being heard by a three-judge panel led by Deputy President Noam Sohlberg, with Justices Gila Canfy-Steinitz and Ruth Ronen. The petitioners include the Movement for Quality Government, the Israel Bar Association, the opposition parties Yesh Atid and Blue and White, MKs Karin Elharrar and Naama Lazimi, the Israelis organization, and attorney Yehuda Rassler.
The petitions focus on two main claims. First, they say that during the second round of voting in the Knesset, held after Ravilo lost the first round, Likud lawmakers were instructed to document and photograph their ballots behind the curtain, which they argue gravely violated the secrecy requirement in Basic Law. Second, they contend that Ravilo is in a severe conflict of interest because he served for many years as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s personal lawyer, making him unfit to oversee the government.
Ravilo submitted his response earlier this week and rejected the allegations outright. He said Israeli law does not bar a candidate for public office simply because of prior professional ties to those who appointed him or whom he may later review. His filing said that capable people can act objectively even after previous relationships.
Ravilo added that he has never been a member of any political party and worked for three decades in private practice without blemish. He said he entered the race out of a “sense of public mission” and a desire to serve the country. On possible conflicts, he said that if a specific personal connection arises, standard procedures will be used, including a conflict-of-interest arrangement that would exclude him from handling that matter. He asked the court to reject the petitions and argued there is no reason to overturn a choice made by a Knesset majority.
