The Constitutional Crisis in Israel
A Special Issue of the Minerva Center’s Israel Law Review
Click Here to access the Special Issue online
We are proud to announce the publication of a Special Issue of The Israel Law Review - the journal of human rights, international and public law of the Minerva Center for Human Rights at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, published with Cambridge University Press - dedicated to the ongoing constitutional crisis in Israel.
In early January 2023, the Israeli government unveiled a broad plan for a ‘reform’ of the legal system in Israel, which would have a profound impact on the constitutional and democratic make-up of the country. This proposal sparked a heated controversy, expressed in all areas of public debate – in the halls of political and governmental institutions, in legal and academic fora, in the media, and also in the streets on an unprecedented scale.
This special issue of the Israel Law Review brings together 16 articles by leading constitutional law experts from Israel and abroad, dedicated to a discussion of the constitutional crisis in Israel, and the government’s efforts to overhaul the country’s judicial system and its relations with the other branches of government. Collectively, the articles provide in-depth perspectives on key aspects of the crisis, the goals and potential consequences of the government initiatives, and the constitutional debate around them. These issues are also of much relevance to other countries facing judicial overhaul initiatives and democratic backsliding, as evidenced by the comparative perspectives of many of the articles in this special issue.
Several components of the government plan have already been legislated (some were subsequently struck down in the courts), draft bills advancing additional key elements of the ‘reform’ are pending, and further elements are being implemented in practice. The project has not been retracted by the government following October 7 and the subsequent ongoing armed conflict, on the contrary. The many issues raised by the government proposals remain as salient and consequential as ever – indeed, if anything, the current armed conflict and the many public law questions it raises only underscore the significance of the proposed changes.