The High Council of Justice (HCoJ) appointed twelve new judges on October 28 who will serve before retirement, following a three-year probationary period.

The Consititution was changed to replace fixed-term tenure with lifetime tenure in 2010, aiming to bolster the independence of judges. The changes came into effect in November 2013.

The newly appointed judges will serve in Tbilisi and Kutaisi city and appeals courts, as well as regional courts of Gori, Signagi and Tsageri.

Controversially, Natalia Nazgaidze, who chaired the three-judge panel adjudicating Rustavi 2 TV ownership dispute at Tbilisi Court of Appeals, is among those appointed today. Rustavi 2 officialls alleged at the time, that Judge Nazgaidze was serving the political interests of the government.