Judge Asher Grunis
Photo: Gil Yohanan
Chief Justice Dorit Beinisch
Photo: Gil Yohanan
Judge Asher Grunis named chief justice
Judges Selection Committee names Grunis Justice Dorit Beinisch's successor as president of Supreme Court, High Court of Justice
The Judges Selection Committee named Judge Asher Grunis president of the Supreme Court Friday. Grunis will replace retiring Chief Justice Dorit Beinisch.
Grunis' appointment was approved with a majority of seven votes. Committee member MK David Rotem (Yisrael Beiteinu) abstained. Grunis, who is himself a member of the committee, abstained as well.
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Chief Justice Dorit Beinisch and Justice Minister Yaakov Ne'eman informed Grunis of the appointment and offered their congratulations.
The appointment was made possible after the Knesset passed the "Grunis Law" – which enables the committee to select a judge whose ages is close to 70 – the stipulated age of retirement for a Supreme Court judge.
The incoming chief justice specializes in civil and commercial law. He is perceives as one who avoids "judicial activism" and his colleagues describe him as hardworking and a man of great personal integrity, who does not fraternizes with politicians.
He is also known as an advocate of human rights.
A senior source in the Judiciary said that "He's a great judge and he is definitely the right man to serve as president of the Supreme Court."
Another legal source added that Grunis "is a minimalist when it comes to interfering with Knesset laws and the government."
Asher Grunis was born in 1945 in Tel Aviv. He graduated from the Hebrew University's School of Law in 1969 and has a Masters from the University of Virginian and a PhD from Toronto's York University.
Grunis served as Dean of Law for the Tel Aviv University for over a decade. From 1988-1996 he served as a Beersheba District Court judge; he was a Tel Aviv District Court judge from 1996-2002 and in 2003 became a Supreme Court judge.
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