Adv. Fenton will replace Adv. Dr. Esther Ben-Haim who is leaving her position after a term of seven years. She will take office after the approval of the Knesset State Control Committee. Adv. Fenton was selected after a public selection process by an advisory committee headed by Judge Ofra Verbner (ret.).
Adv. Fenton, who holds a BA and an MA (with distinction) in Law from the Hebrew University, serves as the Ombudsman under the National Health Insurance Law at the Ministry of Health. Among other things, she is responsible for handling approximately 20,000 complaints annually against HMOs and other health entities. Before her latest position she fulfilled a variety of public positions, including Commissioner of the Tel Aviv District at the Ministry of Interior, Chairperson of the Planning and Building Appeals Committees – Compensation and Betterment Levies Central and Tel Aviv Districts, the Legal Advisor to the Second Authority for Television and Radio, and Assistant to the Legal Advisor of the Office of the State Comptroller during the term of office of the late Miriam Ben-Porat.
State Comptroller and Ombudsman Englman: "The number of complaints received at the Office of the Ombudsman has risen consistently during the past five years, a figure testifying that the public regards the Office of the Ombudsman as an address and that the Office of the Ombudsman's employees are doing everything in order to provide relief for the complainants. Since the start of the Swords of Iron War, the Office of the Ombudsman has handled complaints from thousands of citizens who did not receive a suitable response from the state authorities. I wish Adv. Fenton success upon taking office and I thank Dr. Esther Ben-Haim for her dedicated and energetic service for the benefit of the citizens of Israel".