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Foreign Policy magazine considers the following country's as having the world's most meddlesome Supreme Courts: 

EGYPT

The court: 21 judges appointed by the president for life terms

Activism: Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court cemented its reputation as one of the world's most active judiciaries on June 14 when it dissolved the country's Islamist-controlled parliament, throwing the country's electoral process for yet another loop. The decision followed a ruling in May that barred 10 candidates from the presidential race, including the Muslim Brotherhood's top candidate, millionaire backroom fixer Khairat el-Shater.

The court ruled that a third of the parliament had been elected unconstitutionally, therefore delegitimizing the entire body. That order follows another controversial ruling on the same day that allowed former President Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister, Ahmed Shafiq, to stay in the presidential race, which critics denounced as paving the way for the old regime to retain power.

Egypt's Supreme Court bench is filled entirely with judges appointed by Mubarak, a group with an obvious interest in blocking the Muslim Brotherhood from taking power. The Brotherhood won nearly half of the parliamentary seats in last year's legislative election, and other Islamists gained another 20 percent.

Even though Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohamed Morsi was announced as the winner of the election on Sunday, it's still not clear how much authority he will be allowed by military authorities and presidential allies on the court. Critics around the world have joined the Brotherhood in chalking up the court's rulings to a "soft military coup."

The ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) is supposed to turn over political leadership to a civilian administration on June 30, but with the court's not-so-subtle attempts to keep the Brotherhood from wielding real clout, many fear that the SCAF will retain control indefinitely.

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PAKISTAN

The court: 17 justices appointed by the president for life terms

Activism: On June 19, the Supreme Court issued a ruling stating that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had "ceased to be the prime minister of Pakistan." Gilani had been held in contempt of court since refusing to prosecute President Asif Ali Zardari for corruption, as the court had directed two years ago.

Giliani's sacking is another episode in the escalating power struggle between the military-backed Supreme Court and the civilian administration, which is controlled by Gilani and Zardari's Pakistan People's Party (PPP). The court and the president have been butting heads since 2009, when Zardari opposed the reinstatement of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, who had been sacked by then President Pervez Musharraf. Zardari had only allowed Chaudhry to return to power to avoid massive protests led by Zardari's rival, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The Supreme Court and Zardari's government have been on a collision course ever since, and Gilani's dismissal was yet another judicial attack on Zardari.

But the court didn't stop with ousting the prime minister. When Zardari and PPP leaders selected former finance and health minister Makhdoom Shahabuddin to replace Gilani as prime minister, the court issued a warrant for his arrest for alleged production of an illegal drug. Just to be safe, the arrest warrant includes the ousted prime minister's son, too. Although critics and activists have denounced the court's actions as a coup, spokesmen from the PPP have told their supporters to stand down for the time being.

On June 25, the PPP's second choice -- Raja Pervaiz Ashraf -- took over as prime minister. There's a good chance Ashraf may also be on a collision course with the court, as he is currently facing allegations of corruption and bribe-taking from his time as water and power minister. His relationship with the court could become even more tense if he follows in his predecessor's footsteps by refusing to investigate Zardari.

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ISRAEL

The court: 15 justices (Knesset determines number) appointed by a Judicial Selection Committee, a nine-member body consisting of Knesset representatives, supreme court justices, cabinet ministers, and representatives of the Israel Bar Association. All serve life terms.