Lawyer Mohamed Sameer has been appointed as the President's member on the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
The appointment was made on Thursday afternoon.
Sameer previously worked at the Prosecutor General's office from November 27, 2017 to September 14, 2019, after which he was in private practice as the managing partner of the law firm Sameer and Shamaam LLP.
He also worked as a legal consultant for the Attorney General's office from July 18, 2022 to July 18, 2023.
Sameer earned a masters in law from the Maldives National University after a bachelors of law from Mandhu College. He is currently pursuing a PhD.
Significance of JSC
The JSC is an institution that has the power to appoint, dismiss and promote judges. The composition of the commission is specified in the constitution.
The JSC is comprised of the Speaker of Parliament, an MP chosen by parliament, a member of the public chosen by parliament, a Supreme Court Justice, a High Court judge, a judge from the lower courts, the president of the Civil Service Commission and a lawyer who represents the legal profession.
Other members include the Attorney General and the President's appointee.
The post of the President's member became vacant after the change in government. Former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's member on the commission was lawyer Masthoor Husny, who had also been the commission's Vice President.
The other membership change with the transfer of power was the replacement of former Attorney General Ibrahim Riffath with his successor Ahmed Usham.
The commission's current president is Thulhadhoo MP Hisaan Hussain, a member of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which controlled a majority of the commission for the past five years.
