Justice Minister Yariv Levin responded on Sunday to the High Court hearing on petitions against the law reforming the Judges Selection Committee, accusing Chief Justice Isaac Amit and his colleagues of using an improper veto over judicial appointments. Levin said Amit’s remark that “worthy judges are not being advanced because of political considerations” was really a reference to what Levin called the “invalid veto” blocking the appointments of Dr. Bakshi and Dr. Biton to the Supreme Court. He added that the Supreme Court had for years blocked excellent candidates for “political and personal reasons,” and that “the new law puts an end to this situation.”
Levin also said he has long demanded that the Knesset clearly assert itself and stop what he described as the court’s seizure of the legislature’s powers. He pointed to a resolution drafted with Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and MK Avichay Boaron, saying it states the obvious, that the High Court has no authority to intervene in Basic Laws and that any intervention in the amendment dealing with the Judges Selection Committee is void.
The hearing itself was marked by repeated clashes. Chief Justice Amit ordered MK Tally Gotliv removed from the courtroom after she interrupted him, and later had court security escort her out after she interrupted again. Justice Ofer Grosskopf criticized the plan to remove the Israel Bar Association from the committee.
At the start of the session, Amit said the legislative amendments had fundamentally changed how judges are appointed and created an inherent majority of six political representatives. Later, the justices sharply criticized the manner in which the law was passed and the coalition’s use of the “Basic Law” label to shield it from judicial review.
