Administrative Law Commons^™

Movement For Quality Government V. Knesset, Esther Hayut, Yael Willner, Alex Stein, Gila Canfy-Steinitz, Yechiel Meir Kasher, Noam Sohlberg, David Mintz, Yosef Elron, Isaac Amit, Ruth Ronnen, Uzi Vogelman, Khaled Kabub, Anat Baron, Ofer Grosskopf, Daphne Barak-Erez

Translated Opinions

Movement for Quality Government v. Knesset concerned challenges to Amendment No. 3 to Basic Law: The Judiciary (the “reasonableness amendment”). In view of the controversy surrounding the amendment and the fundamental constitutional question it raised in regard to the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction to review Basic Laws, the Court took the unprecedented step of sitting en banc. A translation of the official abstract issued by the Court appears here.

On January 1, 2024, a majority of the Court (12 of 15 justices) held that the Court held the authority to conduct judicial review of Basic Laws and to intervene in …

Movement For Quality Government In Israel V. The Knesset, Esther Hayut, Yael Willner, Alex Stein, Gila Canfy-Steinitz, Yechiel Meir Kasher, Noam Sohlberg, David Mintz, Yosef Elron, Isaac Amit, Ruth Ronnen, Uzi Vogelman, Khaled Kabub, Anat Baron, Ofer Grosskopf, Daphne Barak-Erez

Translated Opinions

Movement for Quality Government v. Knesset concerns challenges to Amendment No. 3 to Basic Law: The Judiciary (the “reasonableness amendment”). In view of the controversy surrounding the amendment and the fundamental constitutional question it raised in regard to the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction to review Basic Laws, the Court took the unprecedented step of sitting en banc. We translate here Chief Justice Hayut's majority opinion.

On January 1, 2024, a majority of the Court (12 of 15 justices) held that the Court held the authority to conduct judicial review of Basic Laws and to intervene in exceptional, extreme cases in …

Yedidya Loewenthal, Adv. V. Prime Minister, Isaac Amit, Anat Baron, Yosef Elron

Translated Opinions

This petition was submitted by four lawyers, residents of Bnei Brak, requesting an order nisi requiring that the State explain why Government Decision declaring the Bnei Brak municipal district as a “restricted zone” for six days not be revoked.

The Petitioners argued that the declaration of Bnei Brak as a “restricted zone” was intended only to prevent the spread of the virus to adjacent cities, but in no way related to the prevention of its spread among the residents of Bnei Brak themselves. They further argued that the declaration mortally harms the residents’ freedom of occupation, their liberty, dignity and …

General Association Of Merchants And Self-Employed Persons V. Minister Of Interior, Miriam Naor, Yoram Danziger, Isaac Amit, Neal Hendel, Noam Sohlberg, Esther Hayut, Daphne Barak-Erez

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

Further hearing in the verdict given in HCJ 6322/14 in which a variety of claims were raised regarding two amendments to the By-Law of Tel Aviv-Jaffa (Opening and Closing Shops), 5740-1980 (hereinafter: the Amendments), addressing the opening of businesses on the Sabbath in Tel Aviv-Jaffa. The petitioners argued in favor of the constitutionality, reasonableness and proportionality of permitting businesses to open on the Sabbath. …

Kiryat Ata Municipality V. Koren, Uzi Vogelman, Miriam Naor, Anat Baron

Translated Opinions

A person who has a debt to a local authority requests that it issue a certificate that is necessary in order to transfer land rights, however the latter refuses to do so until the old debt is paid. When will it be ruled that the debt expired by virtue of  prescription, or that the authority so delayed in collecting the debt that it can no longer demand payment as a condition to granting the certificate? This is the question raised in this appeal of the decision of the Administrative Affairs Court  ordering the cessation of collection proceedings initiated by the …

Movement For Quality Government In Israel V. Prime Minister, Salim Joubran, Yoram Danziger, Neal Hendel

Translated Opinions

This was a petition challenging the decision to appoint Knesset Member Rabbi Aryeh Machlouf Deri (hereinafter: Deri) to the office of Minister of the Interior in the Israeli Government. The petition was submitted against the background of Deri’s conviction of corruption offences, among them offenses of bribe taking and breach of trust, committed in the period during which he held several senior positions in the Ministry of the Interior at the end of the 1980s. It should be noted that pursuant to Deri’s appointment as Minister of the Economy and Minister for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee, …

Movement For Quality Government V. Prime Minister, Elyakim Rubinstein, Salim Joubran, Noam Sohlberg, Uzi Vogelman, Esther Hayut

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

The Petitions disputed the legal validity of the Gas Outline adopted by the Government in the framework of Government Decision 432 in regard to the treatment of the gas reserves (hereinafter: the Gas Outline). The state and the gas companies holding the franchises defended the Gas Outline.

The Supreme Court, sitting as High Court of Justice (in an expanded bench of five justices) ruled …

Hashavim H.P.S. Business Information, Ltd. V. The Courts' Administration, Elyakim Rubinstein, Esther Hayut, Uzi Vogelman

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

This case concerned a petition challenging the decision of the Courts Administration (the Respondent) making access to its judgment database contingent upon signing a “guarantee” that comprised, inter alia, a prohibition upon indexing the information in a manner that would allow it to be found through web search engines such as Google and Bing. The Petitioner is a commercial company whose primary activity is …

Yadid V. The Coordination Committee Of The Organizations Of Persons Of Moroccan Origin In Israel By The Committee Chairperson Rafael Ben Shushan, Noam Sohlberg, Miriam Naor, Hanan Melcer

Translated Opinions

The Israeli Knesset adopted the Victims of Nazi Persecution (Restrictions on Fees for Handling Pension Claims under an Administrative Decision) (Amendment No. 20) Bill, 5775-2014. The questions presented by this petition are as follows: A. Does the amendment infringe the constitutional rights of the Petitioners in a manner that is repugnant to the Limitations Clause? B. Is the retroactive application of the amendment just and proper under the circumstances? C. Was there any fundamental flaw in the legislative procedure of the amendment that would justify its annulment?

The Supreme Court, sitting as High Court of Justice, denied the petition, holding: …

Al-Qi'an V. State, Elyakim Rubinstein, Neal Hendel, Daphne Barak-Erez

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

An Application for Permission to Appeal, which was adjudicated as an appeal, on a decision to grant the Respondent's motions to evict the Applicants from the land it owns in the northern Negev. Background: The Applicants belong to a Bedouin tribe that has been residing in the area in dispute for approximately 60 years. In the framework of the proceedings in the lower instances, …

Hussein V. Cohen, Asher Grunis, Salim Joubran, Yoram Danziger, Miriam Naor, Elyakim Rubinstein, Hanan Melcer, Esther Hayut

Translated Opinions

Facts: The appeals focused upon the question of whether properties in East Jerusalem that belong to residents of Judea and Samaria are deemed “absentee property” as defined under the Absentees’ Property Law.

Held: In dismissing the appeals, the Supreme Court held that the Absentees’ Property Law applies to properties in East Jerusalem whose owners, beneficiaries or holders are residents of Judea and Samaria. However, in light of the significant difficulties attendant to implementing the Law in accordance with its language, in general, the authorities should refrain from exercising their statutory authority in regard to such properties except in the most …

Zoabi V. Knesset's Ethics Committee, Miriam Naor, Esther Hayut, Elyakim Rubinstein, Hanan Melcer, Salim Joubran

Translated Opinions

This is a statement of reasons for the judgment handed down on Dec. 10, 2014, denying the petition of Petitioner 1, Member of Knesset Hannen Zoabi, in regard to the decision of the Knesset Ethics Committee that found that Petitioner 1 had violated Rule 1A of the Knesset Ethics Rules, and ordered her suspension from participation in meetings of the Knesset plenum and committees, other than for voting, for a period of six months. This decision was made following two statements to the media made by the Petitioner. One was a statement made in a radio interview several days after …

Sela V. Yehieli, Uzi Vogelman, Esther Hayut, Neal Hendel

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

Facts:    An appeal of the decision of the Haifa Administrative Affairs Court, dismissing the petition of the Appellants and holding that the court should not intervene in the decision of the Kfar Vradim local council according to which a women’s mikve (ritual bath) would not be constructed in the town in the near future.

Held:     As a rule, a local council enjoys broad discretion …

Axelrod V. State, Asher Grunis, Miriam Naor, Elyakim Rubinstein

Translated Opinions

The petition urges the Court to compel the Knesset to legislate the matter of marriages between those who cannot (as in cases of intermarriage) or wish not to marry under religious law and are therefore excluded from marrying in Israel. Holding that the Court cannot order the Legislature to legislate outside of correcting a constitutional flaw in existing statutes, President Grunis and Deputy President Naor declined to intervene. In his concurrence, Justice Rubinstein finds that as current marriage laws exclude large portions of the population, the State cannot continue to ignore this reality and violate citizens' right to marry. He …

Wael & Co. V. National Water And Sewage Authority, Salim Joubran, Neal Hendel, Elyakim Rubinstein

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

An appeal addressing the Water (Extraction Levy) Regulations, 5760-2000, in the framework of which the extent of the water levies for extracting water in Israel were prescribed (hereinafter: the "Water Regulations" or the "Regulations"), the legality thereof and the validity of the process of promulgation thereof. The main question in the matter at hand relates to whether or not, pursuant …

Acum V. Emi, Daphne Barak-Erez, Zvi Zylbertal, Elyakim Rubinstein

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

In 2004 the Director-General of the Antitrust Authority determined that the activity of ACUM (a corporation that operates to manage its members’ copyrights in musical works in Israel) constitutes a monopoly on managing copyright over musical works. In 2011 the Antitrust Tribunal (“the Tribunal”) approved the activity of ACUM as a cartel, subject to a series of requirements (“the permanent requirements”), which would be …

Hess V. Chief Of General Staff, Edna Arbel, Hanan Melcer, Yoram Danziger

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.] 

A petition to direct the introduction of a military order prohibiting the use of white phosphorus for any purpose in settled areas and other civilian sites, as well as any use of arms containing white phosphorus in any situation in which there is an alternative weapon that is less dangerous to humans and that is capable of achieving an equal or similar military advantage. …

Doe V. Supreme Sharia Court Of Appeals, Edna Arbel, Miriam Naor, Noam Sohlberg

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

A petition against the decision of the Sharia Court of Appeals that it is not possible to appoint a female arbitrator under Section 130 of the Ottoman Family Law for divorce proceedings conducted before the court. According to the Sharia court, Section 130 of the Ottoman Family Law is based on the Maliki interpretation. Since the Malikis require that the arbitrators be men, women …

Bremer V. Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality, Miriam Naor, Asher Grunis, Elyakim Rubinstein

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

An appeal against the judgment of the Tel Aviv Administrative Court, in which the Court rejected a petition by the Appellants, owners of grocery stores in Tel Aviv, to order the Tel Aviv Municipality to close the businesses operated by Respondents 2-6 (the A.M.P.M and Tiv Taam supermarket chains, hereinafter: the “Respondents”), which are open on the Sabbath, in violation of Section 2 of …

Adalah – The Legal Center For Arab Minority Rights In Israel V. Ministry Of Social Affairs, Edna Arbel, Daphne Barak-Erez, Esther Hayut

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

We are concerned with petitions for the revocation of Section 61(2)(d) of the Arrangements Law (Legislative Amendments for Implementation of the Economic Plan for 2009 and 2010), 5769-2009, as it is unconstitutional, which included Amendment no. 113 to the National Insurance Law [Consolidated Version], 5755-1995 (hereinafter: the “Amendment to the Law”) that ordered, inter alia, the reduction of the child allowances paid for …

Eitanit Construction Products V. State, Neal Hendel, Asher Grunis, Zvi Zylbertal

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

This is a motion challenging the constitutionality of section 74 of the Prevention of Hazards from Asbestos and Harmful Dust Act, 2011 (“Asbestos Act”). The motion is directed primarily at the obligation of the moving party (“Eitanit”), an asbestos-cement factory in the Nahariya area, to shoulder the cost of half the project’s expenses, up to NIS 150m.

The High Court of Justice (written by …

Tel Aviv-Jaffa District Commander V. Israel Internet Association, Uzi Vogelman, Asher Grunis, Noam Sohlberg

Translated Opinions

Facts: In August 2010, the Israel Police ordered major Israeli Internet access providers to block access to eight gambling websites operating outside the State of Israel. The orders were based on section 229 of the Penal Law that permits the District Police Commander to order the closure of any illegal gaming, lottery, or gambling place. The access providers complied with the orders and the Israel Internet Association petitioned the Administrative Affairs Court against the District Commander, contesting the closure, in the interests of Israeli web-users and the general public. The Internet access providers did not petition against the closure of …

State V. Makor Rishon Hameuhad (Hatzofe) Ltd., Elyakim Rubinstein, Isaac Amit, Uzi Vogelman

Translated Opinions

Facts:  A violent demonstration took place at the Ephraim District Brigade Headquarters on the night of 12/13 December 2011. A photographer, who had been invited by one of the participants, was present taking photographs. The police sought an order, pursuant to section 43 of the Criminal Procedure Ordinance, requiring the photographer and her newspaper to produce the photographs. The photographer and newspaper refused, arguing that the photographs would provide information that could identify the photographer’s source, and were thus protected by the journalist’s privilege. The magistrate court applied the Citrin test and rejected the privilege claim. The district court distinguished …

Almaliach V. State, Edna Arbel, Zvi Zylbertal, Uzi Vogelman

Translated Opinions

Facts: The appellant was convicted of the crimes of carrying a weapon, intimidation, and possession of stolen property. The indictment charged that in the early morning hours of December 2, 2006, in the city of Ashdod, the appellant carried a stolen grenade into a building in which the Biton family resided, and then taped the grenade to a piece of cardboard which he then taped to the Biton family‘s front door, leaving a string tied to the grenade‘s safety mechanism. He ran away after a family member woke up and opened the door. The indictment was based on DNA evidence …

Hammer V. Amit, Eliezer Rivlin, Dorit Beinisch, Asher Grunis, Miriam Naor, Edna Arbel, Salim Joubran, Elyakim Rubinstein

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.] 

This opinion is a result of cases joined together in order for the Court to resolve the general questions regarding the cause of action known as “wrongful birth”. This issue arises when a person born with a congenital disability claims that careful conduct by petitions – usually medical professionals who treated the pregnant mother – would have entirely prevented that person’s birth. Two distinct …

Alumni Association Of The Arab Orthodox School In Haifa V. Minister Of Finance, Miriam Naor, Dorit Beinisch, Eliezer Rivlin

Translated Opinions

Facts: The Budget Elements Law was amended in 2011 to include a new section 3b, which provided that if an entity that receives support or budgeting from the government incurs an expense that falls within any of several listed categories, the Minister of Finance can reduce the entity’s budget or support by an amount no greater than three times the size of the said expense. Of the categories listed, the petitioners focused their challenge on two of them: the first, sub-section 3b(b)(1), referring to an expense which was “in essence” a negation of the values of the State of Israel …

Gil V. Minister Of Education, Asher Grunis, Edna Arbel, Hanan Melcer

Translated Opinions

Facts: On 9 March 2011, the Minister of Education announced that Advocate Shimon Mizrahi would be awarded the 2011 Israel Prize in the field of sports, upon the recommendation of the Israel Prize Judging Committee. The members of the Judging Committee were Tal Brody, an renowned basketball player who had played for the Maccabee Tel-Aviv basketball team, and who was awarded the Israel Prize in 1979, Gili Lustig, the head of the competitive sports section of the Israel Olympic Committee and a coach of the Israel All-Star volleyball team, and Esther Roth-Shachamorov, a celebrated athlete who had represented Israel …

Bar-On V. Knesset, Dorit Beinisch, Elyakim Rubinstein, Miriam Naor, Uzi Vogelman, Edna Arbel, Eliezer Rivlin, Asher Grunis

Translated Opinions

[This abstract is not part of the Court's opinion and is provided for the reader's convenience. It has been translated from a Hebrew version prepared by Nevo Press Ltd. and is used with its kind permission.]

Is it possible to circumvent a constitutional principle enshrined in a temporary provision set to remain in effect only for the duration of the current government’s administration term?

Background: on June 22, 2010 Basic Law: The State Budget (Special Provisions) (Temporary Provisions) (Amendment) (hereinafter: “Basic Law Temporary Provision” or “the Law”) was passed to set the budget for years 2011 and 2012, as a …

Israel Oil Refineries Ltd. V. New Hampshire Insurance, Edna Arbel, Elyakim Rubinstein, Eliezer Rivlin

Translated Opinions

Facts: The Tel Aviv District Court granted a petition for the recognition of a judgment rendered by an English court, which had declared that an insurance policy issued by the respondent (New Hampshire Insurance) to an Israeli company, Oil Refineries Ltd. – the appellant – was void on the grounds that a substantial matter had not been disclosed to the issuer. The respondent brought the action in the English court after its sibling company (AIG Europe, which had underwritten the policy) had been served a third party notice in an Israeli proceeding brought against the appellant. The District Court …

Sheleg Lavan V. Ashkelon Municipality, Edmond E. Levy, Edna Arbel, Neal Hendel

Translated Opinions

Facts: The respondent, the Ashkelon municipal government, issued a tender for the provision of cleaning services. The tender documents set a minimum bid price in accordance with the exact amount of the wages for cleaning workers as determined in a government circular establishing a national standard for such wages. Respondent 2 submitted the lowest and ultimately winning bid. As part of the tender process, respondent 2 explained its ability to pay the minimum wage while also covering expenses and earning a profit by noting its expectations that a percentage of its workers at any given time would not have acquired …