Knesset committee to advance ‘reasonableness’ bill, limiting judicial review

Religious Zionism MK Simcha Rothman, chairman of the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice committee, will move forward with a proposed bill on Sunday morning to bar the use of “reasonableness” as part of the government’s judicial overhaul plans, a move that would severely limit judicial review of government decisions.

According to the text of the bill — presented as an amendment to the existing Basic Law: The Judiciary — the courts, including the High Court of Justice, would no longer be able to even hold hearings over the reasonableness of a decision, or invalidate decisions made by the prime minister, the cabinet, ministers, or other elected officials merely based on their reasonableness.

The court will still be permitted to use the reasonableness yardstick for decisions made by unelected officials. READ MORE