The Coalition for an Independent and Transparent Judiciary calls on the authorities to elect Supreme Court judges on the basis of political consensus between the parliamentary majority and the opposition.

“Amid fundamental criticisms of the current composition of the Council and distrust towards the judiciary, the process of judicial selection was seen as another step in strengthening the Clan"s power and deepening existing problems. In the face of the current level of public criticism of the management of the court system, the ongoing process has entered a crisis of legitimacy…

The selection of Supreme Court candidates has demonstrated that it cannot ensure a substantively fair process, under the conditions of mistrust towards the justice system, internal corporate culture, and wrongful management and administration practices. The introduction of an assessment system has failed to create a turning point in building trust in the High Council of Justice and its decisions.

The observation of the process has once again revealed that without fundamental changes in the High Council of Justice and the judiciary as a whole, all important processes (especially the appointment of judges) go through the same circles of mistrust, cronyism, and clan-based power. Consequently, without initiating radical changes in the justice system, any further process will fail to provide an escape from this circle. As the competition for the judicial candidates in the High Council of Justice is carried out in a flawed and unfair manner, it is necessary that:

the Parliament of Georgia appoints the candidates to the Supreme Court based on a political consensus with the parliamentary opposition.
If a consensus with the opposition is not achieved, the Parliament refuses to appoint judges until a systemic justice reform is executed”, - reads the statement.