NGOs against re-appointment of a Court of Appeals chair, a “clan leader”

Eight Georgian NGOs said on Monday that the High Council of Justice, an independent body responsible for the selection and appointment of judges across the country, had plans to re-appoint Mikheil Chinchaladze as chairman of the Tbilisi Court of Appeals, calling on judges not to support  the decisions “that strengthen clan governance” in the country’s judiciary.

The NGOs suggested that in the spring of this year, the term of office of several court chairs, including Chinchaladze, expired.

By law, the head of the Court is appointed from among the judges of the same court for a term of five years by the High Council of Justice through a reasoned decision.

Prior to appointment, the High Council of Justice should consult with the judges of the relevant court.

The NGOs said that the Council of Justice, by a unanimous decision, temporarily imposed the authority of the chairman of the Tbilisi Court of Appeals on the “informal leader of the clan, Chinchaladze, and this decision has not been published yet.”

They said that “amid growing criticism of the judiciary locally and internationally, the Council of Justice appeared to be trying to maintain a clan rule in the judiciary.”