Supreme Court Short-list Published

The nominees include former Attorney-General Elyakim Rubinstein, State Attorney Edna Arbel, District Court Judges Dvora Berliner, Salim Joubran, Bilha Gillor, Hila Gerstl, David Cheshin, Esther Hayut, Oded Mudrik, and Jonathan Adiel, Bar Ilan University Professor Shalom Lerner, Hebrew University Professor Ruth Gavison, and Private Lawyer Hanan Meltzer. Two other candidates, Michael Corinaldi and Shmuel Yelinek, have long-standing private practices and also teach law.

The selection committee will convene to consider the nominees on May 6.

According to initial expectations, Rubinstein, Arbel, Hayut, and Joubran were the favorites. But developments over the past few months may have jeopardized the chances of Arbel and possibly even Rubinstein. Hayut recently completed a reportedly successful term as an acting Supreme Court justice and Joubran is nearing the end of his year-long posting. No Arab has yet served permanently on the Supreme Court.

The Judges Selection Committee includes three Supreme Court justices, two cabinet ministers – including the Justice Minister, who chairs the committee – two MKs, and two representatives of the Bar.

According to the Courts Law, the Justice Minister, the President of the Supreme Court, or three members of the selection committee en bloc may propose candidates for the bench.

During the last meeting of the committee on Supreme Court appointments on May 21, 2003, there were only two nominees, Miriam Naor and Asher Grunis, for two permanent openings. The lack of candidates angered committee members MKs Shaul Yahalom and Dalia Itzik, and Tourism Minister Benny Elon, who threatened to boycott the meeting. This time, they made sure there would be more candidates than openings, including three full-time private lawyers and two non-establishment academics.

All of the candidates who are not currently judges had to win the approval of a subcommittee of the Judges Selection Committee in order to stand for election. Arbel and Rubinstein, both of whom were district court judges before taking on senior Justice Ministry posts, were among those who had to pass the first hurdle.

The candidates:

Elyakim Rubinstein

Born in Tel Aviv on June 13, 1947. Became a lawyer in 1972. Served most of his career in the civil service, including Legal Adviser to Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Defense, Cabinet Secretary, head of negotiating team with Jordan, and Attorney-General from 1997 to the end of 2003.

State Attorney Edna Arbel

Born in Jerusalem in 1944. Became a lawyer in 1969. Served most of her career in the civil service. Started working in the Central District Attorney's Office in 1972 and became Central District Attorney in 1984. In 1988, she was appointed to the Tel Aviv District Court and became State Attorney in January 1996.

Haifa District Court Judge Salim Joubran

Born in 1947. Studied law at The Hebrew University and was licensed in 1970. Worked as a private lawyer from 1970 to 1982. Appointed to Haifa Magistrate's Court in June 1982 and to Haifa District Court in March 1993. Since March 23, 2003, has served as acting Supreme Court justice.

Hebrew University Law Professor Ruth Gavison

Born in Jerusalem on March 28, 1945. Graduated with distinction from The Hebrew University in 1969. Received doctorate from Oxford University in 1975. Licensed in 1971. Has taught at The Hebrew University since 1969. Specializes in legal theory, legal process, philosophy of law, human rights, as well as in other areas. Served as President of Association for Civil Rights in Israel from 1996 to 1999. Was a member of the Shamgar Committee on the Appointment of the Attorney-General and served on the advisory committee to appoint the current Attorney-General.

Deputy Tel Aviv District Court President Dvora Berliner

Born in Israel. Finished her law studies at Tel Aviv University in 1971 and licensed in 1972. Worked in the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Office from 1972-1984. Appointed to Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court in 1984 and became Deputy President of Tel Aviv District Court in September 2003.

Deputy Haifa District Court President Bilha Gillor

Born in Israel. Studied law at The Hebrew University and was licensed in 1969. Worked in a private office from 1969 to 1982. Was appointed to Haifa Magistrate's Court and court registrar in December 1982. From 1984 to 1990 served as acting Haifa District Court Judge and was appointed to the court in 1990. Taught law at Haifa University from 1993-1997.

Tel Aviv District Court Judge Hila Gerstl

Born in Israel. Studied law at Tel Aviv University and was licensed in 1979. Worked in private practice from 1979 to 1990. Appointed to Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court in September 1990 and to Tel Aviv District Court in 1997.

Deputy Jerusalem District Court President David Cheshin

Born in 1948 in Israel. Studied law at The Hebrew University and licensed in 1977. Served as Deputy Editor and then Editor of Mishpatim journal from 1973 to 1977. Worked in private practice from 1977-1984. Appointed to Jerusalem Magistrate's Court in 1984 and to Jerusalem District Court in 1990. Appointed Deputy Court President in September 2003.

Tel Aviv District Court Judge Esther Hayut

Born in Israel. Studied law at Tel Aviv University and licensed in 1978. Worked in private practice from 1978 to 1990. Appointed to Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court in 1990 and to Tel Aviv District Court in 1997. Served for one year as an acting Supreme Court justice until February 29, 2004.

Tel Aviv District Court Judge Oded Mudrik

Born in 1945. Studied law at The Hebrew University and licensed in 1971. Served in the army from 1967-1990. Received his doctorate in law in 1989 from Tel Aviv University. Served as Legal Adviser to the police in 1991. Appointed to the Tel Aviv District Court in 1993 and teaches at Tel Aviv University.

Jerusalem District Court Judge Jonathan Adiel

Born in 1942. Studied law at The Hebrew University and licensed in 1969. Worked in private practice from 1968 to 1972 and from 1975 to 1994. Joined the State Attorney's Office from 1972 to 1975. Appointed to Jerusalem District Court in 1994. Has been the presiding judge in cases involving restrictive agreements since 1995 and standard contracts since 2001. In 2000, he was given appointment to deal with administrative cases.

Bar-Ilan University Professor Shalom Lerner

Born on September 30, 1949. Studied law at Bar-Ilan University, graduating Magna cum Laude in 1975. Received doctorate from The Hebrew University in 1981. Specializes in property and commercial law. Served as dean of Bar-Ilan University Faculty of Law from 1990 to 1994. Chaired Justice Ministry committee on pledge laws. Has taught law at Rishon Lezion College of Administration since 1993.

Attorney Hanan Meltzer

Born in Israel in 1951. Studied law at Tel Aviv University, graduating with distinction. Has been in private practice throughout his career. Has taught as an external lecturer at Tel Aviv University and Bar-Ilan University for the past 30 years.

Attorney Shmuel Yelinek

Born in Givatayim in 1947. Has been practicing law in Tel Aviv for the past 36 years. Specializes in civil law including damages, insurance claims, and traffic accidents. Recently received his doctorate from The Hebrew University, where he has been lecturing for the past 10 years. Has written two legal books and a popular book instructing the public on the legal aspects of traffic accidents.

Professor Michael Corinaldi

Born in Milan, Italy on July 30, 1938. Received his Masters in Law from The Hebrew University in 1962 and his PhD in 1972. In addition to maintaining an ongoing private practice, he has taught law in various capacities and universities since 1963, including Bar-Ilan University, Tel Aviv University, The Hebrew University, and the College of Administration. Specializes in marriage and divorce laws, immigration, and human rights. Has represented the rights of the Ethiopian, Falash Mura, and Karaite communities in the High Court of Justice. Author of several books on these and other subjects.

To the article published by The Jerusalem Post