Reactions to the 2023 Israeli judicial reform

Opposition leaders, senior past civil servants, economists, activists, jurists, and others have harshly criticized the proposed changes, arguing they will undermine judicial independence and effectively grant the government unchecked power.

Sarel wrote that the planned reform gives almost unlimited power to a governing coalition, and that this is likely to lead to interference with the electoral process, for example by disqualifying parties and candidates and suppressing the media.

"[49] Vice Chairman of the World Zionist Organization Yizhar Hess has expressed strong opposition to the proposed reforms, describing them as "a shocking plan to fundamentally alter Israel's system of government".

[61] All seven living former Attorneys General (Aharon Barak, Yitzhak Zamir, Michael Ben-Yair, Elyakim Rubinstein, Menachem Mazuz, Yehuda Weinstein and Avichai Mandelblit) and four of the five former State Prosecutors (Dorit Beinisch, Edna Arbel, Eran Shendar and Moshe Lador) have published a letter saying "We were shocked to hear the plan ... and we're convinced that it does not herald an improvement of the system, but threatens to destroy it."

These far-reaching constitutional changes include providing the government with absolute control over the appointment of the judiciary; near complete elimination of judicial review; dissolution of civil-servant ministerial legal counsels as gatekeepers; and undermining the freedom of the press.

[88] Pardo was also a signatory of a petition by hundreds of Mossad veterans, including other former heads Nahum Admoni, Shabtai Shavit, Danny Yatom and Efraim Halevy, calling on the Knesset to "watch the separation of powers and the values of democracy".

"[102] The overwhelming majority of reserve pilots in the IAF 69 Squadron notified their commanding officers in the Israeli Air Force that they will not be participating in a training exercise scheduled for the following week in protest at the changes the government is making to the judicial system.

He criticized the government for prioritising bills aimed at helping Netanyahu and his ally Aryeh Deri with their legal troubles, as well as state funding for the premier's family residences and clothing, while Iran is seeking to purchase fighter jets from Russia.

Israel Discount Bank CEO Uri Levin said: 'It's impossible to ignore all the economic figures expressing so much concern over the moves, and therefore you need to stop immediately and only advance changes cautiously and with broad agreement.

'"[148] Leo Bakman, the president and one of the founders of the Israel Institute for Innovation, a nonprofit organization that serves as an incubator for 2,500 startups has said "If I thought this [judicial] 'reform' was like shooting oneself in the foot, I would probably think twice about speaking out.

[159] The Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) issued a statement calling for an "immediate halt" to the reform, claiming that it would "severely impact the IDF's performance, diminish Israel's ability to handle its enemies, risk the relationship with the US and sabotage the economy's resilience".

[160] Professor Daniel Blatman, of the Institute for Contemporary Jewry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, when asked about the proposed judicial reforms, said that "In a democracy, a stable and independent legal system is the foundation of all public, economic, social and political activity.

[167][168][170] On 7 August, "The White Robes" – a protest group comprising, according to IMA estimates, some 6,000 physicians and 2,000 other healthcare workers – announced its intention to strike in the event of a constitutional crisis arising from the government's refusal to abide by supreme court rulings.

"[174] Miriam Adelson, the publisher of Israel Hayom, wrote an article saying that "Regardless of the substance of the reforms, the government's dash to ratify them is naturally suspect, raising questions about the root objectives and concern that this is a hasty, injudicious, and irresponsible move.

"[84] About 1,000 Israeli cultural figures, including David Grossman, Nurit Zarchi and Ilana Bernstein, have signed a letter, stating that Israel "is currently facing a most terrible crisis ... [where the] elected government [is attempting] to turn it from a flourishing democracy into a theocratic dictatorship.

[185] The Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the Zionist Federation of Australia issued a joint statement saying "[We] express our serious concern at the governing coalition's proposals to make fundamental changes to the relationship between the Knesset and the judiciary with undue haste and in the absence of broad-based public support.

"[191] Over 200 American Jewish leaders have signed a statement expressing their "concern that the new government's direction mirrors anti-democratic trends that [they] see arising elsewhere [...] rather than reinforcing the shared democratic values that are foundational to the U.S.-Israel relationship."

"[198] Steffen Seibert, the German ambassador to Israel, said that Germany believes an independent justice system is a tenet of democracy and is closely watching the Israeli dispute over a government plan for judicial change.

"[12] In July, following the abolishment of the reasonableness clause, a spokesperson for Baerbock stated that "strong institutions, an independent judiciary and clear rules for the separation of powers are important for every democracy... and that includes Israel.

"[200] Margaret Hodge MP, the parliamentary chair of the Jewish Labour Movement, wrote that "Netanyahu's government plans to undermine judicial independence by instituting the political appointment of judges and introducing a new 'overriding' clause, allowing any decision by the supreme court of Israel to be overridden by a simple majority vote in the Knesset.

"[201] On 25 July the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office released a statement "[urging] the Israeli government to build consensus and avoid division, ensuring that a robust system of checks and balances and the independence of Israel's judiciary are preserved".

"[206] Senator Tim Kaine said that "As tens of thousands of Israelis rally in support of democracy and judicial independence in their country, the Netanyahu administration should listen and avoid taking actions that threaten Israel's democratic institutions.

"[208] Representative David Cicilline, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said that "The sweeping judicial overhaul proposal championed by Israel's new far-right government would be catastrophic for the future of Israeli democracy and our shared democratic values.

"[206] Sixteen Jewish Representatives including Jerry Nadler, Brad Schneider, Jamie Raskin, Elissa Slotkin, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Susan Wild sent a letter to President Herzog, Prime Minister Netanyahu and Opposition Leader Lapid, expressing their "profound concern about [the] proposed changes... [which] could undermine Israeli democracy and the civil rights and religious freedoms it protects.

This effort includes proposed reforms that would grant the ruling coalition absolute power to appoint Justices and judges, make it almost impossible for the Supreme Court to invalidate legislation, severely limit judicial review of executive-branch decisions, and curtail the independence of the Attorney General and legal advisers assigned to different government agencies."

[219] 56 leading US economists, including 11 Nobel Prize laureates, have signed an open letter, stating that "The governing coalition in Israel is considering an array of legislative acts that would weaken the independence of the judiciary and its power to constrain governmental actions.

[237] Over 140 Israeli and U.S. historians have signed a letter, stating: More than 200 prominent Jewish-American scientists, including several Nobel Prize laureates, have come out against the Netanyahu government's judicial overhaul plan.

Referring to the planned legislation which would allow the Knesset to override Supreme Court decisions by a very slim majority of 61 votes in the 120-seat parliament, the scientists warned that "Such imbalance and unchecked authority invite corruption and abuse, and stifle the healthy interplay of core state institutions", explaining that "history has shown that this leads to oppression of the defenseless and the abrogation of human rights."

The judicial 'reform' would also give his right-wing coalition the unfettered power to build any settlements in any place, to seize any Palestinian land and to pour tax dollars into Orthodox religious schools where young people have only to study the Torah, not math, science or literature — let alone serve in the army.

"[260] American legal scholars Richard Epstein (Advisory Board Chairman of the Israeli Law & Liberty Forum, a sister organization of the US Federalist Society) and Max Raskin co-authored an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal in support of the reforms and their economic impact.