How could the new Judicial Selection Committee members impact the court?
The Judicial Selection Committee not only selects judges at the lower levels, but picks the High Court justices.
By YONAH JEREMY BOBKnesset meeting to pass bills to create coalition government on May 6, 2020(photo credit: ADINA WALLMAN)
The Knesset is due to select its two representatives for the all-important Judicial Selection Committee. This committee not only selects judges at the lower levels, but picks the High Court justices, who have a massive impact on the country’s policies and macro-constitutional environment.That makes the selections important in any time period.However, the selections are even more important now because there is a chance that whoever is appointed to the High Court in the next round of appointments could be on a panel hearing an appeal over the verdict in the bribery trial against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.Although there are no immediate vacancies to fill, between now and October 2023, the following justices are due to retire: Hanan Melcer in April 2021, Neal Hendel and George Karra in 2022 and Chief Justice Esther Hayut and Anat Baron in October of 2023.This means at least one-third of the High Court’s 15 justices will change over during this government’s term – assuming it runs its minimum of three years.Given that Netanyahu’s trial and appeal could take years, it also means that the appointed justices will likely take up their seats in time to hear an appeal of the Netanyahu verdict.For the prime minister, how these justices vote could be the difference between jail and freedom and could also decisively impact his political career.The government’s handpicked candidates are Likud MK Osnat Mark and Derech Eretz MK Zvi Hauser, both part of the unity government.In most recent Knessets, one of the two MKs came from the opposition.However, the government has taken the position that since Hauser is connected with the Blue and White Party, the idea of making sure one of the two MKs does not come from the ruling party, currently the Likud, will still be fulfilled.
When the issue came before the High Court, it also seemed ready to look the other way since the government itself is multiheaded, though the justices criticized the idea of not having an official opposition member on the committee.The nine-member committee is made up of three high court justices, two Israel Bar Association appointees, the justice minister – who chairs the committee – another government minister and two non-minister members of the Knesset.It is these last two spots that Mark and Hauser are expected to fill.Critics have slammed the idea of appointing Mark, because she has a photograph of the convicted and disgraced Rabbi Yoshiyahu Pinto in her office, seems to lack clear qualifications and is presumed to be planted by Netanyahu.These critics worry that Mark will try to influence the committee to pick justices who will be beholden to Netanyahu and help him with any appeal of the decision in his bribery trial.Though this is not an impossible scenario, these critics may not have counted the votes.To select a High Court justice, seven members must support a candidate. Netanyahu may be able to control Mark and possibly whichever minister is appointed to the committee.But Hauser went into politics with Telem and Blue and White to oust Netanyahu for corruption.Even as he joined the unity government, he is no more likely to kowtow to Netanyahu for a justice who will be personally in the prime minister’s pocket than Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn (Blue and White).The Bar and High Court justice members certainly will not assist Netanyahu with this.So whether or not Netanyahu can influence Nissenkorn with threats of new elections will be the key issue, rather than Mark being selected.Hauser’s selection is more significant in some ways. While anti-Netanyahu, Hauser, ideologically, is strongly conservative. His presence on the committee may force the High Court justices to split the difference between activist and conservative justices.Regardless, the big power plays on this committee will revolve around Nissenkorn and Hauser.How they negotiate with the Likud could determine much of the High Court and the country’s future.
