Dorit Beinisch
Encyclopedia
Dorit Beinisch (b. 1942) is the president
of the Supreme Court of Israel
. She was appointed to the position on September 14, 2006, after the retirement of Aharon Barak
. She is the first woman to serve as president of the Supreme Court.
. Her father, Aharon Werba, a civil servant, immigrated to Israel from Poland
in 1933. Her mother, Chava, was a kindergarten teacher in Tel Aviv. Beinisch served in the Israeli Defense Forces, where she reached the rank of lieutenant
.
In 1967, she received her Bachelor of Laws degree (LL.B.) from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
and two years later she completed her Master of Laws (LL.M.) summa cum laude at the same university, while apprenticing in the Justice Ministry. In 1964, she married Yeheskell Beinisch, a lawyer in Jerusalem. They have two daughters, Daniella and Michal. On June 6, 2010 Dorit Beinisch was awarded an honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
for 28 years, holding the most senior positions and becoming the first woman in Israel to serve in these positions.
From 1975 to 1982, Beinisch served as the Director of the Department of Constitutional and Administrative Law in the State Attorney’s Office. She represented the state before the Supreme Court in constitutional and administrative cases.
Beinisch served as the Deputy State Attorney from 1982 through 1988. She played an instrumental role in prosecuting some of the state’s most difficult cases, whose impact is felt to this day. She collected evidence for the Kahan commission
that investigated the Sabra and Shatila massacre
, and during the prosecution of the Gush Emunim Underground
she received threats to her life.
From 1989 to 1995, Beinisch served as the State Attorney of Israel. In this position, she directed all government litigation in all levels of courts, took part in forming the State’s policy in criminal, constitutional and civil fields, and was responsible for all the professional aspects of legal representation of the state of Israel in the courts.
Beinisch represented the state of Israel before the Supreme Court in a variety of cases, especially significant constitutional, administrative and criminal law cases in which she was influential in shaping the state’s policy of protecting democratic values. For example, at the end of the 1980s, she headed the struggle in the Supreme Court that led to the banning of the far right-wing Kach
party from the Knesset
.
Beinisch fought for her professional and legal views regarding controversial issues that were under public and political debate. A leading case was the Kav 300 affair
which rocked Israel in 1984, with the revelation that two Palestinian hijackers of an Israeli bus, who had been captured alive by agents of the General Security Service Shin Bet, were executed on the spot. This was followed by an attempt, within the service, to cover up the truth and provide false evidence. Beinisch firmly supported Attorney General
Yitzhak Zamir
’s insistence, that all those involved in the killings and in the cover-up, would be held to account despite the government’s strong opposition to such a trial.
in December 1995. As a Justice, Beinisch has handed down important decisions in varied legal fields – protecting human rights while balancing them with public interests, including security needs, in accordance with international standards and within the principles of constitutional and administrative law; analyzing the constitutional scope of the right to human dignity that is protected by the Israeli Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty; developing the principle of judicial review into the procedures of the legislative branch; reviewing various activities of the executive branch in the light of constitutional and administrative norms, among them discrimination, unreasonableness and lack of proportionality; interpreting criminal law and procedure; and ruling in sexual harassment cases and other sexual offenses cases.
In her rulings, Beinisch emphasized the same principles that she fought for during her public career, together with her belief regarding the role of the Supreme Court in a democratic society to protect human and civil rights, with special attention to the rights of women and children, socially vulnerable populations, and immigrant workers. Beinisch emphasizes the importance of judicial review of the activities of the executive branch, including the military, as well as the importance of following the rule of law and the principle of non-discriminatory law enforcement, and preserving every person's right of access to court.
On January 27, 2010, Beinisch was moderately hurt when a 52-year-old man named Pinchas Cohen hurled his sneaker at her
during a hearing on medical marijuana, hitting her between the eyes, breaking her glasses and knocking her off her chair. Cohen was disgruntled with the legal system over a family court decision four years ago and has a violent history. He was arrested and later apologized for his act, and stated that he hoped she was well.
Among her many notable rulings as a Supreme Court Justice is a decision holding that parents cannot use corporal punishment. Corporal punishment, she wrote, violated the child's right to dignity and bodily integrity.
In a 2006 case concerning a detainee’s right to legal counsel, the Supreme Court acquitted a soldier convicted of using drugs on the basis of his own confession, because the military policeman who interrogated him did not inform him of his right to consult with an attorney. Beinisch ruled that in view of the normative change in the Israeli legal system introduced by the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, the time has come to adopt a case law doctrine of inadmissibility for illegally obtained evidence. She also held that the appropriate doctrine for the Israeli legal system to adopt is not an absolute one, but a relative doctrine which allows the court to exclude illegally obtained evidence at its discretion.
Some of Beinisch’s rulings have dealt with safeguarding human rights while addressing pressing security needs in the West Bank and Gaza. In a 2005 ruling against the Israeli army’s use of “human shields” she concurred with then-President Aharon Barak that the practice of sending in a local Palestinian ahead of Israeli troops during arrest raids endangered his life, violated his free will and his human dignity.
In a judgment rendered in September 2007, Beinisch ruled that the route of the separation fence built by Israel must be altered near the Palestinian village of Bil'in
. Beinisch accepted the military commander's claim that the fence in this area was built for reasons of national security, but held that accommodations made for future Israeli construction did not constitute a vital security need and the route of the fence in the Bil’in area did not meet the proportionality requirement.
In 2007, a petition was brought before the Supreme Court regarding the government's decision to protect the schools in Israeli cities from attacks by Qassam
rockets fired from the Gaza Strip
. The authorities adopted a protection plan under which some of the classrooms were protected and others were not. Beinisch ruled that the decision not to fully protect the classrooms of children in grades 4–12 and special classrooms was highly unreasonable, and the court could intervene.
In 2008, Beinisch ruled on interpretation of the Unlawful Combatants Law and the extent to which the law is consistent with international humanitarian law. In her leading judgment, Beinisch wrote that administrative detention of an "unlawful combatant" significantly violates his right to personal liberty. This was consistent with the basic outlook that prevails in the Israeli legal system, according to which it is preferable to uphold a statute by interpretive means wherever possible, rather than to declare it void for constitutional reasons.
In 2009, Beinisch issued a precedent-setting ruling on the unconstitutional nature of the privatization of prisons.
Beinisch is also known for her dissenting opinions. In one case, she held that a plea-bargain agreement over sexual abuse charges should be canceled because it contravened administrative principles and were against the public interest. In another case, she held that the total ban on political advertisements in television and radio broadcasts was invalid because there is no explicit primary legislation for such an excessive limitation on freedom of political expression.
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
of the Supreme Court of Israel
Supreme Court of Israel
The Supreme Court is at the head of the court system and highest judicial instance in Israel. The Supreme Court sits in Jerusalem.The area of its jurisdiction is all of Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. A ruling of the Supreme Court is binding upon every court, other than the Supreme...
. She was appointed to the position on September 14, 2006, after the retirement of Aharon Barak
Aharon Barak
Aharon Barak is a Professor of Law at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya and a lecturer in law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Yale Law School, and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law....
. She is the first woman to serve as president of the Supreme Court.
Biography
Beinisch was born February 28, 1942, in Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. Her father, Aharon Werba, a civil servant, immigrated to Israel from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in 1933. Her mother, Chava, was a kindergarten teacher in Tel Aviv. Beinisch served in the Israeli Defense Forces, where she reached the rank of lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
.
In 1967, she received her Bachelor of Laws degree (LL.B.) from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
and two years later she completed her Master of Laws (LL.M.) summa cum laude at the same university, while apprenticing in the Justice Ministry. In 1964, she married Yeheskell Beinisch, a lawyer in Jerusalem. They have two daughters, Daniella and Michal. On June 6, 2010 Dorit Beinisch was awarded an honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Legal career
Beinisch began her long public service career when she joined the Ministry of Justice in 1967. She served in the Ministry of JusticeJustice Minister of Israel
The Justice Minister of Israel is the political head of the Israeli Ministry of Justice and a position in the Israeli cabinet. The current minister is Ya'akov Ne'eman, an independent who is not a member of the Knesset....
for 28 years, holding the most senior positions and becoming the first woman in Israel to serve in these positions.
State Attorney’s Office (1967–1995)
Between 1967 and 1969, Beinisch served as Assistant in the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office, moving up in 1970 to become Senior Assistant to the State Attorney.From 1975 to 1982, Beinisch served as the Director of the Department of Constitutional and Administrative Law in the State Attorney’s Office. She represented the state before the Supreme Court in constitutional and administrative cases.
Beinisch served as the Deputy State Attorney from 1982 through 1988. She played an instrumental role in prosecuting some of the state’s most difficult cases, whose impact is felt to this day. She collected evidence for the Kahan commission
Kahan Commission
The Kahan Commission , formally known as the Commission of Inquiry into the Events at the Refugee Camps in Beirut, was established by the Israeli government on 28 September 1982, to investigate the Sabra and Shatila Massacre . The Kahan Commission was chaired by the President of the Supreme Court,...
that investigated the Sabra and Shatila massacre
Sabra and Shatila massacre
The Sabra and Shatila massacre took place in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut, Lebanon between September 16 and September 18, 1982, during the Lebanese civil war. Palestinian and Lebanese civilians were massacred in the camps by Christian Lebanese Phalangists while the camp...
, and during the prosecution of the Gush Emunim Underground
Gush Emunim Underground
The Jewish Underground was a militant organization formed by prominent members of the Israeli political movement Gush Emunim that existed from 1979 to 1984. The group's highest profile plot was to destroy the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem....
she received threats to her life.
From 1989 to 1995, Beinisch served as the State Attorney of Israel. In this position, she directed all government litigation in all levels of courts, took part in forming the State’s policy in criminal, constitutional and civil fields, and was responsible for all the professional aspects of legal representation of the state of Israel in the courts.
Beinisch represented the state of Israel before the Supreme Court in a variety of cases, especially significant constitutional, administrative and criminal law cases in which she was influential in shaping the state’s policy of protecting democratic values. For example, at the end of the 1980s, she headed the struggle in the Supreme Court that led to the banning of the far right-wing Kach
Kach
Kach is town and union council of the Ziarat District in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. It is located at 30°26'2N 67°19'27E and has an altitude of 2020m ....
party from the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
.
Beinisch fought for her professional and legal views regarding controversial issues that were under public and political debate. A leading case was the Kav 300 affair
Kav 300 affair
The Bus 300 affair , also known as Kav 300 affair, was an affair in which Shin Bet members executed two Palestinian bus hijackers, immediately after the hostage crises incident ended and the two militants were captured....
which rocked Israel in 1984, with the revelation that two Palestinian hijackers of an Israeli bus, who had been captured alive by agents of the General Security Service Shin Bet, were executed on the spot. This was followed by an attempt, within the service, to cover up the truth and provide false evidence. Beinisch firmly supported Attorney General
Attorney General of Israel
The Attorney General of Israel stands at the head of the legal system of the executive branch and the head of the public legal establishment, in charge of protecting the rule of law and as such entrusted with protecting the public interest from possible harm by government authorities...
Yitzhak Zamir
Yitzhak Zamir
Yitzhak Zamir is a professor of public law and Dean of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's Faculty of Law, a former Attorney General of Israel, first Dean of the University of Haifa's Law Faculty, and Judge in the Israeli Supreme Court.-Biography:Zamir was born in Warsaw in Poland on April 15,...
’s insistence, that all those involved in the killings and in the cover-up, would be held to account despite the government’s strong opposition to such a trial.
Supreme Court Justice (1995–2005)
Beinisch was appointed as a Justice of Israel's Supreme CourtSupreme Court of Israel
The Supreme Court is at the head of the court system and highest judicial instance in Israel. The Supreme Court sits in Jerusalem.The area of its jurisdiction is all of Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. A ruling of the Supreme Court is binding upon every court, other than the Supreme...
in December 1995. As a Justice, Beinisch has handed down important decisions in varied legal fields – protecting human rights while balancing them with public interests, including security needs, in accordance with international standards and within the principles of constitutional and administrative law; analyzing the constitutional scope of the right to human dignity that is protected by the Israeli Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty; developing the principle of judicial review into the procedures of the legislative branch; reviewing various activities of the executive branch in the light of constitutional and administrative norms, among them discrimination, unreasonableness and lack of proportionality; interpreting criminal law and procedure; and ruling in sexual harassment cases and other sexual offenses cases.
President of Supreme Court (2006–present)
In September 2006 Beinisch was sworn in as President of the Supreme Court of Israel, after being voted in unanimously, becoming the first woman in Israeli history to hold this position. As President of the Supreme Court, she is the head of the Israeli judiciary and responsible for managing the court system. Beinisch believes that one of her primary tasks is to safeguard the independence of the Israeli court system and ensure its apolitical character, and she stands out in her struggle to promote the system’s institutional independency.In her rulings, Beinisch emphasized the same principles that she fought for during her public career, together with her belief regarding the role of the Supreme Court in a democratic society to protect human and civil rights, with special attention to the rights of women and children, socially vulnerable populations, and immigrant workers. Beinisch emphasizes the importance of judicial review of the activities of the executive branch, including the military, as well as the importance of following the rule of law and the principle of non-discriminatory law enforcement, and preserving every person's right of access to court.
On January 27, 2010, Beinisch was moderately hurt when a 52-year-old man named Pinchas Cohen hurled his sneaker at her
Shoeing
Shoeing, throwing shoes, showing the sole of one's shoe or using shoes to insult are forms of protest in many parts of the world.Incidents where shoes were thrown at political figures have taken place in Australia, India, Ireland, Israel, Hong Kong, Pakistan, the United Kingdom and most notably,...
during a hearing on medical marijuana, hitting her between the eyes, breaking her glasses and knocking her off her chair. Cohen was disgruntled with the legal system over a family court decision four years ago and has a violent history. He was arrested and later apologized for his act, and stated that he hoped she was well.
Landmark rulings
Beinisch has focused on government corruption and to ensuring that government institutions adhere to the law, with a particular emphasis placed on the IDF, the police and general security services.Among her many notable rulings as a Supreme Court Justice is a decision holding that parents cannot use corporal punishment. Corporal punishment, she wrote, violated the child's right to dignity and bodily integrity.
In a 2006 case concerning a detainee’s right to legal counsel, the Supreme Court acquitted a soldier convicted of using drugs on the basis of his own confession, because the military policeman who interrogated him did not inform him of his right to consult with an attorney. Beinisch ruled that in view of the normative change in the Israeli legal system introduced by the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, the time has come to adopt a case law doctrine of inadmissibility for illegally obtained evidence. She also held that the appropriate doctrine for the Israeli legal system to adopt is not an absolute one, but a relative doctrine which allows the court to exclude illegally obtained evidence at its discretion.
Some of Beinisch’s rulings have dealt with safeguarding human rights while addressing pressing security needs in the West Bank and Gaza. In a 2005 ruling against the Israeli army’s use of “human shields” she concurred with then-President Aharon Barak that the practice of sending in a local Palestinian ahead of Israeli troops during arrest raids endangered his life, violated his free will and his human dignity.
In a judgment rendered in September 2007, Beinisch ruled that the route of the separation fence built by Israel must be altered near the Palestinian village of Bil'in
Bil'in
Bil'in is a Palestinian village located in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, west of the city of Ramallah in the central West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Bil'in has a population of 1,800, mostly Muslims.-History:...
. Beinisch accepted the military commander's claim that the fence in this area was built for reasons of national security, but held that accommodations made for future Israeli construction did not constitute a vital security need and the route of the fence in the Bil’in area did not meet the proportionality requirement.
In 2007, a petition was brought before the Supreme Court regarding the government's decision to protect the schools in Israeli cities from attacks by Qassam
Qassam
Qassam may refer to:*Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, an influential Islamist preacher*Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas*Qassam rocket, a type of rocket used by the military wing of Hamas against Israel...
rockets fired from the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
. The authorities adopted a protection plan under which some of the classrooms were protected and others were not. Beinisch ruled that the decision not to fully protect the classrooms of children in grades 4–12 and special classrooms was highly unreasonable, and the court could intervene.
In 2008, Beinisch ruled on interpretation of the Unlawful Combatants Law and the extent to which the law is consistent with international humanitarian law. In her leading judgment, Beinisch wrote that administrative detention of an "unlawful combatant" significantly violates his right to personal liberty. This was consistent with the basic outlook that prevails in the Israeli legal system, according to which it is preferable to uphold a statute by interpretive means wherever possible, rather than to declare it void for constitutional reasons.
In 2009, Beinisch issued a precedent-setting ruling on the unconstitutional nature of the privatization of prisons.
Beinisch is also known for her dissenting opinions. In one case, she held that a plea-bargain agreement over sexual abuse charges should be canceled because it contravened administrative principles and were against the public interest. In another case, she held that the total ban on political advertisements in television and radio broadcasts was invalid because there is no explicit primary legislation for such an excessive limitation on freedom of political expression.