Courts of Justice board to decide Cheep nomination
The Courts of Justice (CJ) board will meet next Tuesday to decide the nomination of Supreme Court vice-president Cheep Julamon as Supreme Court president after it rejected the nomination of Appeal Court president Sirichai Watthanayothin this week.
The CJ sub-panel in charge of vetting the Supreme Court president candidate’s qualifications yesterday voted unanimously in support of Mr Cheep’s nomination.
Mr Cheep’s name will be forwarded to the board meeting next Tuesday.
A new Supreme Court president is being sought to replace the incumbent, Weerapol Tangsuwan, who is scheduled to retire on Sept 30.
Mr Cheep is the second senior justice to be nominated for the presidency this week.
On Monday, the CJ rejected Mr Sirichai’s nomination as court president, said CJ spokesman Suebpong Sripongkul.
The CJ voted unanimously 14-0 to drop the nomination, despite Mr Sirichai being the most senior justice in line for the presidency.
The CJ sub-panel determined Mr Sirichai was unfit to be president and the CJ board subsequently threw out his nomination.
According to a source in the CJ, one of the reasons given for rejecting Mr Sirichai was his decision to refer a drugs case, which reached the Appeal Court, for second and third opinions, as though attempting to secure an opinion that he would find agreeable.
Mr Sirichai yesterday held a press conference to deny media reports he planned to challenge the CJ’s decision to drop his nomination.
He said the CJ had the authority to oversee the reshuffle of justices and court officials and the decision was final. He insisted he respects the CJ’s rejection of his nomination.
It was nothing special that a name put forward to the CJ may not be selected for the court’s top post, Mr Sirichai said, adding he will continue to work as Appeal Court president.
However, he dismissed claims he had improperly sought too many opinions on a drugs case, saying it was a matter of different interpretations of the law.
He also admitted he felt a degree of disappointment not being able to serve as Supreme Court president. “But it’s over. I respect the rules,” Mr Sirichai said.
If he had been promoted, he would have been the first law graduate from Ramkhamhaeng University to rise to the top seat of the court, he added.
Mr Sirichai said that he intends to stay on until the end of his term, and after that he may consider whether to become a senior judge.