Supreme Court Chief Justice Esther Hayut Rejects MK Simcha Rothman’s Request for Her Recusal from “Reasonableness” Law Hearing
On Monday, Supreme Court Chief Justice Esther Hayut declined a request from MK Simcha Rothman, chairman of the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, to recuse herself from a panel hearing petitions against the government’s “reasonableness” law. Rothman, a member of the far-right Religious Zionism party, had based his request on a speech delivered by Hayut in January, in which she strongly criticized various aspects of the judicial overhaul agenda presented by Justice Minister Yariv Levin, including the proposal to limit the High Court’s use of the reasonableness standard.
Hayut, in her response on Monday, asserted that her speech was delivered in her capacity as the head of the court and reflected her deep concerns about potential harm to the judiciary’s independence posed by the justice minister’s plan. She clarified that her speech touched on the issue of canceling the reasonableness test proposed by the justice minister and the associated challenges.
The reasonableness law, an amendment to Basic Law: The Judiciary, is a component of the government’s broader judicial overhaul program and has already been passed. It restricts the High Court from annulling governmental and ministerial decisions based on the reasonableness standard.
During Hayut’s January speech at a conference of the Israeli Association of Public Law, she criticized the judicial overhaul program for seeking to diminish the significance of the reasonableness standard, which she regarded as an essential legal tool. She also rejected the argument that governmental decisions are purely professional and values-based, suggesting that a judge’s opinion should not hold more weight than that of the official making the decision.
Rothman argued in his motion that Hayut’s speech indicated she had already formed an opinion on the issue and that there was a legitimate suspicion of bias, potentially undermining the appearance of justice in hearings on the legality of the amendment. He cited the 1984 Courts Law, which advises judges to recuse themselves if there is a genuine concern of bias affecting the trial.