Majority disapproves President’s candidates for Supreme Court
By Tea Mariamidze
Friday, January 6
A leading member of the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party, Gia Volski, says that the parliamentary majority has the same position over the candidates of Supreme Court, re-nominated by the President of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, on June 29, 2016.
Margvelashvili re-nominated two candidates for the Supreme Court, Tamar Laliashvili and Nona Todua, who were previously nominated but not supported by Parliament in early June 2016.
The third candidate, Anna Dolidze, who was also voted down by the previous parliament, was appointed by Margvelashvili as the Parliamentary Secretary of the president.
While re-nominating the candidates, the President expressed hope that Parliament would make the “correct” decision and called upon MPs to discuss the nominated candidacies seriously.
However, the previous Parliament of Georgia went into summer recess after finishing its spring session on June 24 2016, and the new parliament has to discuss the issue.
Volski says the candidates will be voted for at the spring session of Parliament.
However, the MP added that the majority has not changed its opinion over the candidates, when they were voted down.
Volski noted that the nominated candidates were professionals in their fields but were rejected by Parliament on the position of the Supreme Court Judges.
Laliashvili was once a judge of the Supreme Court in 2001-2006, while in 1993-1999 she acted as Georgia’s Chief Prosecutor. She is a Doctor of Law and author of two books and up to 20 scientific works.
Todua enjoyed 30 years of educational-scientific experience in law; she is the author of up to 30 scientific works and publications.
Judge candidates need the support of at least 76 lawmakers from the 150-seat Parliament to be able to begin working as a judge in the Supreme Court of Georgia.
According to the law, the President has the right to re-nominate the same candidates for a second time. However, if rejected by Parliament again, the President will have to name other candidates.
