Resource to Help You Understand the Judicial Reforms in Israel
Background Information and Reading
On December 29, 2022, a new Israeli government, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was sworn in. You can read Jewish Federations’ statement on the new government here, and listen to a recording of our webinar: “Jewish Federations and the New Israeli Government.”
Israel has no written constitution, and a Basic Law meant to regulate the balance of power between the branches of government, in particular between the Knesset and the Supreme Court, has never been enacted. Therefore, the system of checks and balances between government authorities was left for the Supreme Court to establish. It did so, at least in the view of most of its justices, on the basis of Knesset legislation. Now Israel’s new government is considering reforms to that system.
The proposed judicial reforms, parts of which are already at various stages of the legislative process, have generated extraordinary levels of debate in Israeli society and around the world.
The Jewish Federations of North America sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid (original Hebrew version here) expressing our concerns over aspects of the reforms and urging the two sides to negotiate a compromise, based on the suggestions of President Isaac Herzog. News of our letter was widely reported in the Israeli press, and shortly after the letter was delivered, Prime Minister Netanyahu openly called for dialogue (see here) and Opposition Leader Lapid responded in a letter to Federations, stating that he agreed with our principles.
Proposed Changes
- Read Justice Minister Levin’s proposed changes and listen to a podcast with MK Simcha Rothman who is propelling the changes forward in the Knesset Committee. Also see here an unofficial translation of the proposed new Basic Law.
- Why is the override clause at the heart of the forthcoming coalition’s agenda and how does this relate to civil rights in Israel? (video explanation by Prof. Suzie Navot, Vice President of the Israel Democracy Institute)
- The Override Clause Explainer (article by Dr. Amir Fuchs, Senior Researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute, November 11, 2022)
Concerns
- Thomas Friedman: American Jews, You Have to Choose Sides on Israel
- INSS Podcast on the possible national security implications of the proposed reforms.
- A Constitutional Coup Will Backfire (op-ed by Dr. Shuki Friedman, Vice President of the Jewish People Policy Institute, December 5, 2022)
- The Israeli Judicial System Must Be Preserved – Former Supreme Court Justice Elyakim Rubinstein
- The Proposed “Reform” of the Judicial System Poses Risk to the Israeli Economy
- Judicial reform: What does the elimination of derived rights mean for Israelis?
- ‘We Know What It’s Like Without Democracy’: Russian Speakers Join Israel’s Protest Wave
- Protestors and pilot protestors
- Democrats urge Biden to use diplomatic tools to stop Israeli judicial reform
Compromise?
- Gil Troy: How to find unity and sanity in a divided, partisan Israel
- Israel, it’s time for a grand bargain on judicial reforms (op-ed by former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman).
- The Case for a ‘Constitutional Truce’ in Israel (Wall Street Journal op-ed by Yohanan Plesner, January 10, 2023)
- No To Levin’s Revolution, Yes to Changes in the Legal System (Jpost op-ed by Prof. Yedidia Z. Stern, President of the Jewish People Policy Institute, January 13, 2023)
- Overhauling the Judicial System – What Do Israelis Think?
Latest Developments
