Court ruled: senior appointment at Agriculture Ministry will remain in place

The Tel Aviv Labor Court rejected a petition against the appointment of Dr. Chen Hening as head of the Animal Welfare Division at the Ministry of Agriculture. The petitioners demanded a new tender, claiming unjustified changes in conditions and a biased committee, but the judge ruled the remedy was far-reaching. It was ruled that the committee complied with the Civil Service Regulations, Hening received high scores, and the plaintiffs were ordered to pay costs.

The Tel Aviv Labor Court rejected a petition filed against the appointment of Dr. Chen Hening to the position of head of the Animal Welfare Division at the Ministry of Agriculture. The petitioners demanded a new tender, claiming that the change in threshold conditions was made without professional justification and that the composition of the examining committee was problematic and biased, as its members lacked sufficient expertise in the field and were professionally connected to the director of veterinary services. The state argued that the change in conditions was made within its authority, after the first tender left a very limited pool of candidates, and that the committee's composition complied with the Civil Service Regulations and all its members had relevant experience. The court ruled that the committee's composition complied with the regulations, no dependence or bias was proven, and Hening received the highest scores in personal parameters. Ultimately, each of the two plaintiffs was ordered to pay the state 20,000 shekels in costs and 25,000 shekels in attorney fees. Lawyers Shahar Hoffman and Anat Lazer, representing Hening, stated that the court rejected the baseless claims and clarified that she was chosen lawfully and justly.