Israel Appoints 70 New Judges After 18-Month Freeze

The Judicial Crisis Ends—For Now—With 70 New Judges in a Politically Charged Move

Israel’s Judicial Selection Committee has shattered an 18-month freeze by approving 68 new judges, injecting life into a legal system crippled by vacancies and political warfare. The appointments—68 district court judges—were confirmed on June 29, 2025, by The Times of Israel and The Jerusalem Post, marking the first nominations since the committee ground to a halt in November 2024.

The breakthrough came after Justice Minister Yariv Levin, the architect of the government’s controversial judicial overhaul, reversed course. For months, Levin had blocked nominations unless the committee adopted stricter vetting standards favoring judges aligned with the coalition’s conservative legal vision. But the pressure—from legal professionals, opposition parties, and international bodies like the International Bar Association—forced a compromise.

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A Compromise That Smells Like Politics

The committee’s decision included one judge previously accused of dismissing corruption probes into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s aides, a choice that immediately raised eyebrows.

A source close to the committee told The Times of Israel that Levin’s office agreed to fast-track nominations for judges already vetted under the old system—effectively sidestepping the reform-related disputes that had paralyzed the process. Levin’s own office did not respond to requests for comment.

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Courts on the Brink: A Growing Backlog

The backlog was already catastrophic. As of May 2025, the Israeli Ministry of Justice reported a severe backlog of unresolved cases clogging district courts, with criminal proceedings suffering the most. Some courts in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Haifa were operating with significantly reduced staffing, forcing delays that stretched from months to years.

The new judges will ease the strain—but only temporarily. Protests over the judicial reforms continue to rock major cities, and opposition parties have already vowed to challenge the selections in court, arguing they violate judicial independence. The Israeli Supreme Court, meanwhile, has delayed ruling on the constitutionality of the reform law, leaving the legal landscape in limbo.

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What’s Next? More Judges—If Politics Allows

The committee has not set a timeline for further appointments, but sources suggest additional judges could be nominated by year’s end. For now, the move is being called a “bandage, not a cure” by legal analysts. The deeper conflict over judicial power remains unresolved—and with the Supreme Court’s ruling still pending, the fight is far from over.