Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
pletely displaced its predecessor, and the current use of religious courts governing matters of
personal status is a continuation of the pre-1918 Ottoman system.
In 1953 the law regarding the appointment of judges transferred authority from the prime
minister to the president, who would be guided by input from a committee made up of Su-
preme Court judges, members of the bar, and public fi gures, to ensure the courts' indepen-
dence from the executive branch.
An even more important, and still controversial, change came in 1995, when the Supreme
Court established its right to review laws to make sure they did not violate the Basic Laws. This
ability to rule laws as unconstitutional solidifi ed the superiority of the Basic Laws and greatly
added to the power of the court. While generally accepted, the right to review sometimes
makes religious and conservative groups angry, for they see the court as acting more like a
court of the political and secular left than like the court of the state as a whole. The court sys-
tem is nevertheless one of the institutions in which the Israeli public consistently reports high
levels of trust.
The judiciary in Israel is divided into two sections: the general law courts, also known as the
civil courts, and the tribunals. The general law courts have authority over criminal, civil, and
administrative issues; the tribunals have more specifi c and personal jurisdiction. The religious
Jewish courts, which are considered tribunals, rule mainly in matters of personal status — for
example, in such family matters such as marriage and divorce. No courts in Israel operate us-
ing a jury system.
Supreme Court
At the top of Israel's judicial hierarchy is the Supreme Court, which also has the tricky job of
fi nding the correct balance between individual rights and the needs of the state. The Supreme
Court comprises ten justices appointed by a special commission made up of the justice minis-
ter, another cabinet minister, two serving Supreme Court justices, the president, two Knesset
members, and two members of the Israeli Bar Association. Justices serve until death, resigna-
tion, or mandatory retirement at age seventy. A justice can be dismissed if the president or
another justice recommends it and if seven of the nine commission members agree.
The Supreme Court is situated in the capital city of Jerusalem and has jurisdiction over the
entire country as both the high court of appeals and as the High Court of Justice for special or
severe cases that do not fall under the jurisdiction of other courts or tribunals. All rulings by
the Supreme Court have precedence over other courts or previous rulings.
In recent years, the Supreme Court has usually included at least one Dati and one Arab
judge. Three to fi ve justices rule on regular cases. Under certain circumstances, the Supreme
Court has the authority to order a retrial. Cases also reach the Supreme Court when a petition
is brought against a government body, in which case the Court functions as the High Court of
Justice. Palestinians in the West Bank often take this route to pursue grievances, such as objec-
tions to the route of the security fence.
The six mid-level district courts have regional jurisdictions. The judges preside over crimi-
nal and civil cases for which the potential punishment is a jail term above seven years or a fi ne
of over one million shekels. These courts also rule in prisoner appeals, company and partner-
ship cases, and tax matters. Usually one judge is appointed to handle a case.
