Government tells High Court nullifying ‘reasonableness’ law will result in ‘anarchy’

The court nullification of a Basic Law will lead Israel to anarchy, the government said in a response submitted Friday to petitions calling on the High Court of Justice to strike down the first piece of legislation passed as part of the government’s judicial overhaul: the “reasonableness” law.

An unprecedented full 15-justice panel of the High Court is slated to hear the petitions against the law on September 12, next week. A variety of government ministers and other figures have warned of the potential for chaos if the court strikes down a law passed by the Knesset to curb the court’s authority, setting up a potential constitutional crisis.

In its brief, the government argues that the court lacks statutory authority to annul Israel’s quasi-constitutional Basic Laws, and therefore any such verdict would be based on unlegislated and unclear “basic principles.” READ MORE