Levin Escalates Clash with Supreme Court After Judicial Appointments Hearing

Justice Minister Yariv Levin intensified his confrontation with Israel’s legal system on the heels of a Supreme Court hearing, releasing what the article describes as an unprecedented response video. He attacked Supreme Court Justice Isaac Amit directly and accused the High Court judges of conducting proceedings without authority and rejecting worthy candidates for purely political and personal reasons.

The dispute was triggered after Amit criticized the appointments process during the hearing, saying, "They do not promote worthy judges because of political considerations." Levin fired back, saying, "He certainly meant the improper veto that he and his colleagues are placing on the appointments of Dr. Bakshi and Dr. Biton to the Supreme Court. That is exactly the essence of the amendment we passed." He further alleged that for years senior judges had blocked excellent candidates for non-substantive reasons simply because "they are not one of them," and said the new law is meant to end that practice.

Levin also said he is using the moment to advance an accelerated legislative move that would sharply limit the court’s powers. He said he has long demanded that the Knesset stand up clearly and stop what he called the judiciary’s seizure of its powers. He called for an immediate vote on a resolution previously agreed with Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and MK Avichai Boaron, which says the High Court has no authority to intervene in Basic Laws and that any intervention in the amendment dealing with the committee for selecting judges would be void.

The timing is politically and legally sensitive. Recently, Likud filed a formal notice to the High Court in the petition of MK Karin Elharrar, strongly opposing a repeat Knesset vote on matters already decided and warning of a "dangerous precedent" in the parliamentary system. Levin ended by urging a broad public push, saying, "This is the time for a clear public demand to bring this proposal to an immediate vote."