In September 2020, the Minister of Justice at the time, Amir Ohana, surprised when he arrived at the cabinet meeting with a lawyer, his own legal advisor.
Dr. Aviad Bakshi from the Kehalat Forum. The former ombudsman Avihai Mandelblit protested strongly and demanded that the consultant be prevented from entering the meeting, claiming that the exclusive right to consult belongs to the ombudsman. The government surrendered, Dr. Bakshi was left out.
Two years have passed and things have changed.
Yesterday, the memorandum of the government law containing the Levin reform to the judicial system was distributed - a reform written, among other things, by Bakshi.
Contrary to custom, the memorandum did not go through the ombudsman and the advisory and legislative department, but was drafted independently by lawyers close to the minister, including Bakshi. A constitutional committee, which was written by attorney Shimon Netaf, a lawyer at Forum Kehalat, a former assistant to Supreme Court judge Yosef Elron and currently an advisor to the chairman of the committee, MK Simcha Rothman. Knesset Speaker Sagit Afik protested, since she is supposed to Submit legal opinions to Knesset members.
2022, Bakshi is inside and the state lawyers are outside.
The unprecedented attack of Supreme Court President Ester Hayut on the government // Photo: Shmuel Buchris
This is what led, among other things, to the harsh speeches of the ombudsman, and especially of the president of the court, Judge Ester Hayut.
Until today, it was the presidents of the Supreme Court who opposed almost any change in their area code, while at the same time expanding their reach further and further.
Again and again.
In recent years, also for judicial review of fundamental laws.
Ecclesiastes and members of the Knesset shouted harsh speeches from the podium, but the judges refused to compromise and moderate, even when minority opinions echoed by Judge Noam Solberg were thrown at them in the verdicts.
The wheel turned.
Prime Minister Netanyahu unleashed the reins on his people, and Rival Levin, along with Simcha Rothman, do not count Hayut.
Now she is forced to shout on the stages.
Stubbornness and turning a deaf ear to public criticism will eventually lead to a backlash.
And here she came.
but.
And the grief is great.
Levin and Rothman's intention to correct the justice system is desirable, their actions?
Not sure.
They are taking the long-awaited correction in the justice system to the extreme.
revolution.
Even judicial activism slowly expanded itself over the years in the way of evolution.
The State of Israel is too dear to us to embark on a political adventure in one year.
Chairman of the Constitution Committee. Rothman, photo: Yossi Zeliger
I am not afraid of a speech by animals, nor of the demonstration on Saturday night or of my fellow journalists who do not even try to hold a substantive discussion of the reform in the media.
I'm afraid that we, the right, the conservative jurists - are becoming "pigs".
For example, the Levin reform will result in the coalition's complete takeover of the Supreme Court.
The coalition constitutes 65% of the citizens, but does it deserve 100% of the supreme?
The argument until today was that the court must reflect the public, not only the right-wing public, the electorate of the coalition.
We asked for a diverse court, not "our" court.
The Levin reform should be moderated and reduced.
Pick two fixes and run with them.
examine their influence over a period of time, and only then decide whether to continue.
This is conservatism.
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us