Israel’s Judicial Reform Package: The End of Legal Elitism and the Legitimacy Crisis

Document Type : ٍEnglish Articles

Authors

1 Assistant professor of Public Law, Department of Public Law and International Law, School of Law and Political Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

2 . PhD Candidate of Public Law, School of Law, Department of Public Law and International Law, School of Law and Political Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

3 professor of Public Law, Department of Public Law and International Law, School of Law and Political Science, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

Abstract

This article examines the conditions and consequences of the proposed judicial reform package on Israel’s constitutional order using an analytical and library-based research method. Within Israel’s separation of powers framework, two main currents — religious Zionism and secular Zionism — are institutionally represented in the Knesset (and the executive branch) and the judiciary, respectively. These two factions originally converged on the foundational goal of establishing a safe homeland for Jews. The judicial reform package, which authorizes the Knesset to override Supreme Court rulings by a simple majority, alters the composition of the Judicial Selection Committee, lowers the retirement age of Supreme Court justices, restricts the use of the “reasonableness doctrine,” and reduces the authority of legal
advisors, effectively curtails the judiciary’s capacity to check and balance periodic majorities. Given the country’s demographic structure, the approval of this bill would allow the religious and fundamentalist bloc to gain absolute power. As a result of the erosion of constitutional safeguards based on the separation of powers, Israel would face major constitutional challenges, including a legitimacy crisis, the restriction of citizens’ political agency, the violation of minority rights, and the weakening of legal security. These developments ultimately conflict with the founding vision of the State of Israel.

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References

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