Law school deans decry legal reform: ‘Could harm each and every one of us’

Eight deans of law schools in Israeli universities and colleges pen an open letter slamming Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s planned judicial reform, claiming it would alter the country’s constitutional structure and threaten Israel’s democratic character and its basic judicial principles.

“The extreme change in the constitutional structure that the new government wants to implement would remove important checks and balances on the government and Knesset, which are demanded and in place for every democratic country acting in accordance with the principle of separation of powers,” they write.

“This extreme change could harm each and every one of us,” they add. “The proposals’ implementation could turn Israel into a state in which there is, in practice, only one branch of government, since the Knesset and the executive are already controlled by the coalition.

“The far-reaching proposals might sideline the value of equality, critically harm defense of minorities and individual liberties, and gravely reduce the critical independence of the court system.”

The reform may enable discrimination against various groups and disproportionately favor Judaism over other religions, the deans caution, warning against the “flawed and hasty” manner in which Levin plans to advance the reform.

The letter is signed by the deans of the law schools at Bar Ilan University, Tel Aviv University, the Hebrew University, Reichman University, University of Haifa, the College of Management, the College of Law and Business, and Sapir College.