Override Clause

The proposed 'Override Clause' would grant the Knesset the authority to override judicial decision with a simple majority of 61 Members of Knesset. In Israel, any coalition government has by default 61 members. Therefore, any government would have the ability to override judicial decisions, affectively eliminating judicial review of legislation by the Court. Since in Israel’s parliamentary system the executive branch controls the legislative branch, the elimination of judicial review would remove the most significant checks and balances on the government. 

Prof. Suzie Navot explains the Override Clause and its implications

 

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Publications Regarding Override Clause

Articles

Play
IDI's Proposals for Reforms

Constitutional Reform in Israel - How should it be done?

President of IDI, Yohanan Plesner, describes the judicial reforms that would make Israeli democracy stronger and transform a moment of crisis into an historical constitutional opportunity.

Article

How Often Does the Supreme Court Invalidate Legislation?

In recent years, there have been attempts to enact the “override clause” in Israel, a legal provision that would enable the Knesset to override the Supreme Court’s rulings in cases in which it strikes down legislation. This week the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee is discussing a draft of such a law.

Op-ed

Reversing the ‘Constitutional Revolution’

The second article in this series describes in depth how the Supreme Court used its authority, why it encountered a backlash, and what current proposals to limit the power of the Court to exercise judicial review over Knesset legislation look like.

Book Summary

Checks and Balances: The Override Clause and Its Effect on the Three Branches of Government

The debate surrounding the Override Clause should really focus on the disproportionate power of the Knesset and not on the power of the Supreme Court. All other democracies have structural mechanisms that limit the concentration of power in the hands of one institutions - we must create such a mechanism in Israel as well.

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Explainer

Prof. Suzie Navot Explains the Override Clause

Why is the override clause at the heart of the forthcoming coalition's agenda and how does this relate to civil rights in Israel? Prof. Suzie Navot, Vice President of the Israel Democracy Institute explains the role of the Supreme Court in Israel's democratic system in just over two minutes.

Op-ed

The Proposed High Court Override Clause Will Reverse Gender Equality Gains

The new coalition's shortage of women and its proposed High Court override clause are a danger to the struggle for gender equality in Israel.

Explainer

The Override Clause Explainer

Turning court rulings into a “recommendation” that the Knesset could override, is likely to exacerbate tensions that already exists between the Supreme Court and the Knesset.

Op-ed

Whatever Happened to the Override Clause?

It turns out that voters actually want robust judicial oversight - which explains why the Override Clause and placing limitations on judicial review have not been prominant in the election campaign

Op-ed

The Return of the Override Clause? A Dangerous and Unnecessary Step

Laws define the legal rules of our democracy and ensure the stability of the political system while guaranteeing individual rights and general public interest - enactment of the Override Clause would seriously undermine this balance.

Play
Personal Story

The Override Clause and Special Needs Children

Ilil Leder, relates how she was able to achieve equality in education for her daughter and all special needs children with the help of the High Court of Justice

Play
Personal Story

The Override Clause and Equality in Schools

Attorney Yoav Laloum relates how by petitioning the High Court of Justice he was able to stop ethnic separation in ultra-Orthodox educational institutions

Play
Personal Story

The Override Clause and Gender Equality in the IDF

Alice Miller describes how the High Court of Justice helped change women’s military service and improve gender equality in the IDF

Op-ed

Who will be Overridden by the “Override Clause”?

The good news is that despite the unprecedented offensive which aims at dealing a significant blow to the Supreme Court, the majority of the Israelis still have trust in this institution. In fact, the levels of trust in the court are much greater than those of the Knesset and the Government

Press Release

What is the Public’s Opinion on the Override Clause?

A special survey conducted by the Guttman Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research at the
Israel Democracy Institute finds: The majority of the Israeli public fears that implementation of the Override Clause by the Knesset will give unlimited power to politicians and lead to an increase in political corruption

Op-ed

Override: A Serious Blow to Democracy

Dr. Amir Fuchs argues that an override of Supreme Court decisions should be stoutly resisted by democrats from all parts of the political spectrum.

Op-ed

The Override Clause—Canada and Israel

Democracies ensrhine onstitutional rights, and give the court the power to protect them, out of concern that the legislator may act rashly, or even tyrannically - so then why should we "override" the court's authority - when we have no other constraints

Play
Personal Story

The Override Clause and Shielding School Classrooms

Batya Katar describes how she was able to make the state allocate the necessary budget to shield classrooms against rockets through the intervention of the High Court of Justice

Article

Q&A on the Override Clause

Israel Democracy Institute experts provide research, background and insight into WHY | WHO | HOW