Israeli Supreme Court Rejects Petition Against Judge Khaled Kabub Over Disciplinary Complaint

The Israeli Supreme Court dismissed a petition on Tuesday that sought to compel Justice Minister Yariv Levin to file a disciplinary complaint against Supreme Court Justice Khaled Kabub. The ruling was delivered by Justice Gila Kanfi-Shtainitz, with agreement from Deputy President Noam Solberg and Justice Alex Stein. The petition was filed by the Lavi Association for Civil Rights, Good Governance, and Settlement Promotion, which argued that after the Judicial Complaints Commissioner upheld three complaints against Kabub, the Justice Minister was obligated to initiate disciplinary proceedings. The association claimed Kabub had acted improperly, breached judicial ethics, and behaved in a manner unbefitting his position.

The court noted this was the second iteration of the petition; an earlier one was dismissed because the Justice Minister had not yet made a decision and due to procedural exhaustion issues. Since then, the petitioner contacted the minister twice more without receiving a response. The Justice Minister's office stated no substantive decision had been made and that the petitioner had not submitted an updated request before filing the petition. It added that the minister would address the matter when possible amid his workload.

Justice Kanfi-Shtainitz ruled the petition premature, as it sought to force the minister to file a complaint rather than to make a decision first, and emphasized that filing a disciplinary complaint is discretionary. The court also criticized the minister's delay in responding to the petitioner but concluded his conduct did not amount to extreme unreasonableness warranting judicial intervention. The petition was rejected without ordering costs, while preserving the parties' rights and claims.