Justice Minister Yariv Levin on Sunday called for an immediate Knesset vote on a proposed Knesset resolution declaring that the High Court has no authority to review Basic Laws and that any intervention in the judicial selection reform amendment is void, Israeli media report. Levin's statement came after Chief Justice Yitzhak Amit opened an expanded 11-justice panel hearing on petitions against the reform, which the minister accused of operating without authority.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin escalated the confrontation over judicial selection reform on Sunday, calling for an immediate Knesset vote on a Knesset resolution that would declare the High Court has no authority to strike Basic Laws — and that any intervention in the law altering the Judicial Selection Committee's composition is void.
Levin's statement, published shortly after 17:09 Jerusalem, described Chief Justice Yitzhak Amit's conduct during the expanded hearing as having convened 'without authority,' citing Amit's comment during the session: 'We do not advance worthy judges because of political considerations.' Levin argued the quote demonstrated the very problem the reform is intended to solve.
The resolution in question was previously agreed upon between Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, MK Avihai Boaron, and Levin himself. It asserts the basic principle — as Levin put it — that the High Court cannot review Basic Laws.
As The Zioneer reported earlier Sunday, Amit opened the expanded 11-justice panel at 09:16 Jerusalem by asserting the court's authority to review and invalidate Basic Laws, citing the reasonableness standard precedent. Levin has previously refused to recognize Amit's appointment as Supreme Court president, calling the process unlawful. The current hearing addresses petitions against the law removing Israel Bar Association representatives from the selection panel and eliminating the judges' veto over Supreme Court appointments.
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