Will the Judiciary Refuse to Carryout Justice?

Will the Judiciary Refuse to Carryout Justice?

"Dismissed Judges" continue to struggle for their rights by highlighting the illegal actions of the Disciplinary Counsel. The former judges investigated every possible case presented to them, which could be the very reason for their dismissal. According to the judges, the Head of the Disciplinary Council, Kakhaber Khipiani, was appointed to the position illegally. His position means he gets to cast 2 votes in any decision made by the Council, thus his opinion is often pivotal.

Information about the education and work experience of Kakhaber Khipiani was not available to the public. Judges could only get the document made public after they threatened the Council of Justice with a hunger strike. According to the document, Kakha Khipiani, like Nino Kalandadze (another Council member), does not have the necessary 5 years relevant work experience. On December 26th, the Disciplinary Council, as a result of Kakhaber Khipiani’s membership, dismissed 4 judges of the Supreme Court; Nino Gvenetadze, Merab Turava, Tamar Laliashvili and Murman Isaev. The dismissed judges claim that any decisions made by this Council are illegal and therefore invalid.

“Kakha Khipiani enrolled in the Jambakur Bakradze Institute’s short courses in 1998, with the faculty of Law and Economics. He only graduated in 2001, so it is clear that between 2001 and 2004 he could not have managed to gain 5 years of experience. How it is possible to place as the head of such an important body, which decides the fate of judges, a person who does not even have a normal juridical education nor work experience?” stated Judge Merab Turava .

On February 13th, the judges sued Kakhaber Khipiani in the Tbilisi City Court Administrative Board. The analogous case regarding Nino Kalandadze was not discussed by the court. If the judges brought a case involving Nino Kalandadze to trial, she would have to show documentary evidence to prove that she has the necessary 5 years experience. According to the judges she would not be able to prove this, because a week ago they received a document from the Central Office of German Technical Collaboration, which states that Nino Kalandadze only worked for several months as an administrative assistant. Earlier she had stated that she worked for 2 years as a legal-expert at the very same organization.

“It is possible to make the wrong decision, but to simply refuse to carryout justice is unbelievable. The only way out for her was not to hold a trial, because if the case had made it to trial, she would have had to bring documentation proving her experience. I see that the judge in this case could not resist the pressures placed upon them”, said Nino Gvenetadze.

The judges are going to appeal against the decision at the Chamber of Administrative Cases of the Court of Appeal of Georgia. According to them, Nino Kalandadze faked her Diploma and they will prove it in court.

Anna Chkhaidze