Ex-justice Rubinstein warns government plans will create ‘democratic dictatorship’

Former deputy Supreme Court Justice president Elyakim Rubinstein warned that a controversial package of sweeping legal reforms proposed by Justice Minister Yariv Levin would leave Israel with just one branch of government, the executive, and hollow out Israeli democracy, joining a growing outcry against the planned overhaul.

Speaking to The Times of Israel, Rubinstein said he understood the desire to formalize the authority of the High Court of Justice through a Basic Law for legislation, but said he disagreed with almost all the proposals for such a measure being advanced by Levin and the new government.

Last week, Levin introduced a program of four radical changes that would severely restrict the High Court’s capacity to strike down laws and government decisions; enact an “override clause” enabling the Knesset to re-legislate such laws; give the government complete control over the selection of judges; prevent the court from using a test of “reasonableness” against which to evaluate government decisions; and allow ministers to appoint their own legal advisers, instead of getting counsel from advisers operating under the authority of the Justice Ministry. READ MORE