The five candidates who expressed their desire to participate in the competition for membership in the Supreme Council of Justice of Georgia and submitted their applications to the Administration of the President of Georgia are known.

The participants in the competition for the candidacy of a non-judge member of the Supreme Council of Justice are Giorgi Burjanadze, Dimitri Gabunia, Manuchar Kakochashvili, Kakha Tsikarishvili, and Tamar Alphaidze.

Another session of the selection commission was held today, during which the compliance of the documents submitted by the candidates with the legislation was checked.

According to Tamar Laliashvili, a member of the commission, the main criteria for evaluating the contestants have already been established. These criteria align with those for appointing judges to the positions in the 'General Courts' law. One key criterion is good faith, which was also included in the EU enlargement report regarding judges, and the Commission is guided by this principle.

"The second criterion is the contestant's professionalism, or qualification. Both of these criteria are very important. I would especially emphasize the criterion of good faith used in the evaluation process. Resilience, resistance to pressure, and independence are also important," Tamar Laliashvili said before the commission session.

According to Guram Imnadze, a member of the commission and representative of the 'Social Justice Center,' the Supreme Council of Justice is the central link and institution in the justice system. Therefore, the selection of individuals who will be in the council will obviously impact the justice system as a whole.

"Currently, the selection competition for a non-judge member of the council is underway, and the president should appoint someone to this position. It is very important that this process is conducted as openly and fairly as possible, ensuring that the contestants have equal opportunities to demonstrate their skills, professional achievements, and more.

It is positive that this process will be monitored by OSCE/ODIHR representatives, which will add even more credibility to it. We strongly hope that, in the end, at least one member of the Council appointed by the President will be a person distinguished by both professional skills and high principles of integrity—someone who will voice this critical perspective in the Council and ask the necessary questions," said Guram Imnadze while speaking to journalists.

To ensure complete transparency in the selection process of candidates for membership in the Supreme Council of Justice and to increase public confidence in the selected candidates, an independent selection commission was established by the decision of the President of Georgia on June 21. This commission will evaluate the qualifications, reputation, independence, and integrity of the candidates based on the information presented and the results of individual interviews with them, and will submit recommendations to the President of Georgia.

The commission will conduct interviews with the candidates next week. The interviews will be broadcast through the official social media channels of the President of Georgia.

The selection process for candidates for the non-judge member of the High Council of Justice will be monitored by experts from the Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the OSCE.

The term of office of the non-judge member of the Supreme Council of Justice appointed by the President of Georgia expires on July 22, 2024.

The main steps of the fundamental reform of the Supreme Council of Justice are outlined in the 'Georgian Charter' prepared by the President of Georgia. One of the key steps is the assessment and verification of the qualifications, integrity, independence, and other important information about the members of the Supreme Council of Justice by an independent and impartial commission.

The President has the discretion to select and appoint one of the candidates participating in the competition as a member of the Supreme Council of Justice, from among those who meet the requirements established by law. Nevertheless, by the President's decision, an independent selection commission was created, which will submit recommendations to the President regarding the participants in the selection competition for membership in the Supreme Council of Justice.

The President will appoint a non-judge member of the Supreme Council of Justice by July 15, 2024, at the latest.