Israel needs to learn the right lessons from Canada’s legal reforms
Irwin Cotler is an emeritus professor of law at McGill University and a former minister of justice and attorney-general of Canada. He has appeared before both the Supreme Court of Canada and Israeli High Court of Justice on constitutional issues.
This is not to say, as some critics have argued, that this risks the “end of democracy” or the slide into “dictatorship.” At the end of the day – and the mass protests have demonstrated this most compellingly – Israel still has a strong civil society, an elected parliament , a free press, and quasi-constitutional Basic Laws, including the Basic Law on Human Dignity and Liberty.
If the Israeli Override Clause is adopted, at the very least, it should require more than a simple majority of 61 MKs as is currently proposed. A supermajority of at least 70 MKs, or ideally 80, two-thirds of the Knesset, should be required in order for the override to be invoked. The fourth major proposed reform is the rejection of the reasonableness standard of review, which requires government action to be reasonable in nature, and which protects against arbitrary and discriminatory executive action. In Canada, the standard of reasonableness is the primary standard for judicial review – in fact,of Canadian administrative law decisions are made using the standard of reasonableness.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Opinion | The Blue Jays’ left should complement what the right is doingOpposing pitchers should have a tougher time getting in a groove, says Brandon Belt, one of the Jays’ left-handed-hitting additions.
Read more »
Israel’s Itamar Ben-Gvir brings fury from the right-wing fringes to Netanyahu’s governmentAs Benjamin Netanyahu’s point man on national security, this up-and-coming nationalist is shaping hard-line policies for Palestinians and Jewish settlements
Read more »
Opinion | Sabres defencemen are good enough to rekindle the QEW rivalryBuffalo and Toronto have been going in different directions for years, but that is changing with Dahlin and Power.
Read more »
Opinion | Making space for Black artists in TorontoOpinion: Over the past 12 years, the Black Artists’ Networks in Dialogue has evolved into a charitable organization with a dedicated audience and communities and a clear place in this city.
Read more »
Opinion | Population aging is one of our most urgent challengesOpinion: Our governments must develop and implement health and social innovations that enable healthy aging both at home and in the community.
Read more »
OPINION: Universities should be promoting truth not fictionIt\u0027s one thing to make unsubstantiated claims of systemic racism but claims that fly in the face of the evidence is tantamount to propaganda
Read more »