The Knesset Constitution Committee chaired by Simcha Rothman finished preparing on Monday a bill that increases the government’s power over the appointment method of the judicial system’s state watchdog.
The committee will hold a final vote on Tuesday. The bill will then return to the Knesset plenum for its second and third reading and, assuming it passes the plenum vote, will then become law. This could happen within a week.
The watchdog, officially known as the Ombudsman of the Israeli Judiciary, is responsible for hearing complaints against all judges with statutory powers. This includes criminal, traffic, and family courts, as well as religious court judges, and can initiate disciplinary proceedings against them.
According to the current law, the watchdog is appointed based on a joint proposal by the justice minister and the High Court chief justice.
The former watchdog, former High Court judge Uri Shoham, finished his tenure in May, and Justice Minister Yariv Levin has since refused to cooperate with interim Chief Justice Uzi Fogelman and current Chief Justice Isaac Amit to appoint a new one.
Current law requires that the watchdog have a relevant background and deep familiarity with the court system. Although not required by law, all former watchdogs have been retired high-court justices.
Government control over judicial appointment
According to the new proposal, the watchdog will be appointed by a seven-member committee made up of: the justice minister, the labor minister, two judges (one appointed by the high court bench, and the other by the chief justices of the regional courts), as well as a retired religious judge appointed by the two chief rabbis, in addition to the national public defender and, ultimately also a Knesset member, whose appointment method is set by the Knesset Speaker.
The new committee gives the government de facto control over the appointment of the watchdog since the two chief rabbis are politically associated with the haredi parties, who are part of the governing coalition.
Together with the two ministers and the member of Knesset, whose election method is set by the Knesset speaker, a coalition member, the government would thus garner at least four votes in the seven-member committee.
Rothman has argued that the High Court’s chief justice not be involved in the election process since he will also face oversight by the watchdog. However, MKs from the opposition, representatives from the Attorney General’s Office, and representatives from civil society organizations argued that the bill would politicize the role of the watchdog, which may then use its powers to sanction judges based on their political affiliations. It also constituted a “change of the rules while the game is ongoing.”
The opposition members argued that the bill was a part of a wider attempt by the government to undermine and weaken the independence of the judicial branch.
The government cited a number of complaints against recently-elected Chief Justice Isaac Amit prior to his appointment in January in an attempt to delay or block his appointment. Opposition MKs pointed out that the coalition had resumed legislation of the watchdog bill after Amit’s appointment, arguing that this indicated that its real purpose was to exact revenge on Amit by taking disciplinary measures against him.