Tbilisi City Court Head demands dismissal of Supreme Court Chair and Supreme Council of Justice
By Tea Mariamidze
Thursday, December 31
The head of Tbilisi City Court, Mamuka Akhvlediani, spoke of the incompetence of the Supreme Court Chair, Nino Gvenetadze, and the Supreme Council of Justice. He made the statement at an annual press-conference held on December 29, wherein he presented his report to various Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs).
According to Akhvlediani, the recently-carried out justice reforms have failed in comparison with previous years; the number of cases has doubled and the number of judges has reduced.
Akhvlediani explained that in August, the number of judges was 99 and now this number is 85. He claims that he has addressed the Supreme Council and the chair of Supreme Court multiple times, asking them to increase the staff number, but to no avail.
Moreover, the Head of Civil Court does not understand the process of appointing the judges. He says that the appointment of some judges is based on backroom deals and personal relationships.
“The process of the judges’ appointment should not be based on secret ballots. Each candidate should explain who they voted for and why. This is the only way to make this process more transparent,” said Akhvlediani.
Akhvlediani believes that the Supreme Council and the Chair of Supreme Court have made inappropriate decisions, and demands their dismissal. He does not rule out making a complaint against the Council members.
Nino Gvenetadze responded to Akhvlediani’s comments, saying that from the initial stage of judicial reforms, there was a disagreement between her and certain judges – such as Akhvlediani himself - who are against the electronic distribution of cases and other changes in the system.
She calls on the head of the Tbilisi City Court, to follow high ethical standards while making announcements.
The parliamentary majority says that the disagreement should be resolved within the court system itself, while the minority believes that the judicial reforms have failed in the country.
Several NGOs have also made some remarks. They say that there is a lack of judges in the system and this problem hinders the timely hearing of the cases.
