The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee will convene today (Sunday) to resume the advancement of the government’s planned judicial reforms after the opposition froze the negotiations on the issue at the President’s Residence.
The Israel Hayom newspaper reported that the first item on the agenda is the restrictionof the ‘reasonableness standard,’ which allows the Supreme Court to strike down laws and government actions not based on an agreed-upon legal standard, but because the judges deem them ‘unreasonable.’ The goal is to pass a bill restricting the standard by the end of the summer.
The ‘reasonableness standard’ was the basis for the disqualification of Shas chairman Aryeh Deri from serving as a minister in January. The standard has its basis in English law, and allows the court to review and strike down government actions on the argument that no ‘reasonable’ government would engage in such actions.

Under the proposed bill, the courts would no longer be able to use the reasonableness standard to review and strike down actions of the prime minister or other ministers, as well as “other elected officials.” The bill’s authors have not yet decided whether municipal elected officials such as mayors would still be subject to judicial review under the reasonableness standard.
The opposition is expected to do everything in its power to delay the passage of the bill.