AG: Knesset misused authority in passing Recusal Law

Israel’s Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has filed an opinion with the High Court of Justice on the Recusal Law, which was passed by the Knesset earlier this year. Baharav-Miara was responding to a High Court petition against the law by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel

In her opinion the Knesset misused its authority when it enacted the law, in order to improve Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s legal situation. She believes that there is a place to issue a conditional decree ordering the Knesset and prime minister to give reasons why the law should not be repealed.

Baharav-Miara writes, “The overall circumstances clearly show that we are dealing with a fundamentally flawed constitutional amendment and its results, which is the product of misuse of the constituent authority of the Knesset, in a fast-track legislative process, to improve the personal legal situation of the prime minister and allow him to act contrary to the ruling of the respected court.”

Netanyahu’s lawyers Advs. Michael Rabilo and Roi Schechter responded that the court is not authorized to invalidate a basic law. “One should not interfere with the Knesset’s fundamental legislative work in a way that would constitute a precedent-setting and exceptional interference by the honorable court in the Knesset’s constitutional role.” The lawyers also claim that there is no room to expand the grounds of recusal beyond objective circumstances for reasons of health or death due to the existence of parallel arrangements to “remove” a serving prime minister in a democracy.

The law passed in March, amended the basic law of the government and stated that only the prime minister or the government could announce the removal of the prime minister, and only due to physical or mental incapacity by a majority of 75% of the members of the government.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on July 25, 2023.

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2023.