Spanish Steps

The Student Exchange Program at the Hebrew University's Faculty of Law offers a chance to visit a variety of attractive locations around the world. In recent years, the Faculty signed agreements with leading institutions, including the law faculties at UCLA and Stanford. The growing importance of East Asia was reflected in new agreements with top-ranking schools in Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Exposure to foreign academia is a special opportunity the Faculty offers to outstanding students. The exchange program is growing each year, in terms of both the number of institutions and the number of students participating.

A large number of students apply each year for the exchange program. Some of the applicants are looking for a different cultural and academic experience as a break from the routine of life in Israel. Others are mainly interested in the chance to learn about different legal systems.

"Reut describes the experience of studying in Barcelona as a taste of classic European academia. She is enjoying the opportunity to study at a university steeped in the Continental tradition and in a foreign language, and to encounter an unfamiliar legal system. The program includes one semester of studies, but the Spanish academic system has given Reut a chance to develop both in her law studies and in her hobby, which in her case is really a second profession. Despite her love of dance, Reut also mentions some challenges: "It's a very hard profession and a very competitive world. Maybe one dancer in a million manages to make an impression, so it is very hard to decide whether this really what you want to do." Reut is combining two competitive and demanding fields, but she still manages to pursue her law studies and to dance several times a week. "I think I will always find time to dance, because it's something that makes me feel good. I would love to be successful in this field, but there's no way of knowing where it will take you."

The studies have a strong practical orientation.

Apart from the different geographical and cultural setting, there are also quite a few differences compared to law studies in Israel. Most of the students are aged 18 to 22, and the fact that they are younger than their Israeli peers explains some of the differences in the study requirements. For example, approximately half the student's final grade (and sometimes more) is based on attendance at 80 percent of classes and participation in class. The lessons are based mainly on reading material, and the lecturer often begins by asking the students what they thought of the material. An informal discussion in the corridor between students in the Faculty of Law raises an interesting conclusion: Although the Israeli students read less than their Spanish classmates, they participate more in class. Is this just Israeli bravado? We'll find out when the final grades are published. For now, our representatives in Spain are discovering that the Continental legal system influences the study style, as well as the content of the courses. The system is based on legal codes and the judge plays a different role; perhaps because of this, the studies have a strong practical orientation. In many cases, the law is taught as a simple point of fact, without discussing the rationale behind its enactment. Law students, and even those working in the profession, do not always know the judges by name. "If a judge is known by name, this is usually not a good sign," comments Dr. Anna Salom Vidal, a lecturer in comparative law.

During their years of study at the Faculty of Law, the students attend classes discussing laws, ideas and the thoughts of different philosophers, judges and scholars. As the French philosopher Albert Camus pointed out, "There always comes a time when one must choose between contemplation and action." The Faculty of Law's Clinical Legal Education Center, directed by Dr. Einat Albin, offers students a chance to move between the spheres of contemplation and action, to put ideas into practice, and to participate in hands-on legal action. Legal field work also provides an opportunity to assess where the law is meeting the needs of reality and where it shows failures or inadequacies. This is not only vital for understanding the practice and limitations of law, but also yields important insights that help the students gain more from all their courses in the faculty.

These insights can in turn encourage change in the law. A wide range of clinics relating to diverse fields of law is offered, and new clinics are introduced each year. In this issue, we focus on the activities and innovations in two of the clinics offered in the new academic year.

The Legislative Consultation Department

The Civil Justice Clinic has changed its format this year. Attorney Hagit Borochovitz, one of the clinical teachers last year, was particularly impressed by a project that began with a position paper prepared by Chaim Avraham, one of the students who worked in the clinic. Chaim, aged 26 from Jerusalem, recalls: "The idea was the direct result of one of the cases I was involved in. A convicted rapist had evidently smuggled assets out of Israel in order to avoid paying compensation. Similar cases were also mentioned during conversations in the clinic. I wanted to try to find a solution to the problem faced by victims." It emerged that the State of Israel has not established a public mechanism for compensating the victims of criminal offenses (along the lines of the mechanisms used to compensate the victims of road accidents and acts of hostility). As a result, if offenders smuggle out their assets, the victim will be unable to secure compensation, even if this has been ruled in their favor in an individual claim.

Lahan Sarid, one of the students in the team, highlights the complex nature of the task. "It wasn't easy to find a mechanism that secures the victim's right to compensation while avoiding disproportionate injury to the defendant's right to property." With this in mind, the mechanism included in the proposed law establishes that a warning notice may only be recorded on any of the defendant's assets at the indictment stage. Despite the intensive work involved, Lahan warmly recommends that students participate in the clinic's work: "From my own experience, the work on this project was one of the most meaningful things I have ever been involved in. I was originally attracted to the clinic because I wanted to work with victims, but the combination of this field and the field of damages law opened up interesting new vistas for me. I worked with a very diverse group of people, and the clinical staff really deserve credit for the amazing way they steered the process." Attorney Borochovitz adds that the next stage of the process will include efforts to interest Members of Knesset in advancing the proposed law and securing the amendment of the existing legislation.

The Innocence Project – A First in Israel

This year, the clinic is launching Israel's first-ever Innocence Project to provide representation in applications for retrials. Attorney Manny Salomon, who is supervising the project, notes that the inspiration for the initiative came from the Innocence Project founded in the US. "Our goal was to try to secure the acquittal of prisoners by means of DNA tests that were not available at the time of their trial," Attorney Salomon explains. "The US Innocence Project developed on the basis of clinics in various faculties of law. Today, it is an independent body that has managed to secure the acquittal of around 300 prisoners."

Some positive developments have also been secured in Israel in this field, particularly since the establishment of the Public Defender's Office. Attorney Salomon recalls that, prior to 2001, the picture was extremely bleak. At the time, only the attorney general could submit an application for a retrial. "This was a problematic arrangement, given the inherent conflict of interests it entailed. The unfortunate result is that, to date, the attorney general has only submitted one application for a retrial," Salomon adds. The Baranes affair, when a defendant was convicted of murder and only acquitted after a lengthy public and legal struggle, led the Public Defender's Office to initiate a legislative amendment enabling any person to request a retrial. "These are complex and protracted proceedings that require personnel and budgets that are simply not available," Salomon explains. "Accordingly, the Public Defender's Office announced the establishment of the Innocence Project. Several private law firms agreed to handle one such case each a year." However, the current situation is still unsatisfactory, and intensive work is needed both in terms of representation and on the level of policy advocacy. The Innocence Project that is being launched this year seeks to meet this need. Eight students from the Criminal Justice Clinic are participating in the project. Attorney Salomon highlights the wide range of issues the students will address: "The students will supervise retrial cases from the moment the application is received. They will comb the evidential material carefully in an effort to collect, discover and expose evidence and flaws that can secure a retrial. They will also help represent the case before the Supreme Court when it hears the application." Attorney Salmon also mentions a further aspect of the students' work: "The students will help promote various proposed laws relating to the field of retrials, as part of an effort to reduce the factors that lead to false convictions and to provide a simple and rapid legal course for implementing the right to a retrial and for correcting judicial distortions."

Attorney Salomon believes that the justice system cannot be complete without a control mechanism that can help improve the judicial process and reinforce public confidence in the courts. "The project is beginning in our clinic, but in the future we hope that the other universities and colleges will also open clinics." Looking further ahead, Salomon concludes: "Eventually, the vision is that the project will become a strong and independent body."

Attorney Manny Salomon: "The students will supervise retrial cases from the moment the application is received… and will also help represent the case before the Supreme Court."

Researchers in the Field: The Effectiveness of International Tribunals

"The European Union is intensively involved in establishing and maintaining international tribunals. Yet no structured methodology has been developed for examining the effectiveness of these tribunals," says Professor Yuval Shany, dean of the Hebrew University's Faculty of Law and the founder of the Project on Assessing the Conditions for Effective International Adjudication. The project, which is being implemented under the auspices of the European Research Council, is now entering its fifth year and seeks to tackle this complex field. "The project provides a framework for evaluating the effectiveness of tribunals and ways in which this can be influenced. This kind of project can provide decision makers with tools for deciding whether to establish a new tribunal or to reform an existing one."

How did you recruit researchers to the project?

"Some of the researchers responded to a call to participate in the project – particularly post-doctorate students, some of whom came from abroad. I also contacted doctorate students whom I felt were suitable for the project. Israel is a small country, and the number of people involved in the field of international law is fairly limited."

How do you examine whether tribunals are effective?

"The question is effective in whose eyes, and for what purpose? Our central argument is that tribunals must meet the expectations of those who founded them. The research group has prepared a framework for evaluating the effectiveness of international tribunals. The researchers apply this framework, or sections of it, to research questions regarding the effectiveness of particular tribunals or specific aspects of their work."

What findings have you reached?

"In many cases, tribunals were asked to fill numerous and sometimes contradictory functions. This means that from the outset the structure of the tribunal prevented it from working effectively. For example, if a tribunal is instructed both to resolve conflicts within a short period of time and to ensure the full and final solution of all the issues it hears, a conflict may emerge between these two objectives."

A research microcosm

The concept of "effectiveness" covers a very broad research field. The research team is examining a type of effectiveness that is qualitative, rather than quantitative. Peter Drucker, the founder of modern management theory, argued that "Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things." The project partners seek to answer the research question by applying diverse and sometimes multidisciplinary approaches. For example, Dr. Maria Varaki, a Greek legal scholar, is applying theories from the fields of sociology and organizational management. Varaki, who formerly served as a consultant in the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, is examining how this tribunal managed to establish its legitimacy. She comments: "No-one considered sociological legitimacy in advance, and it was never emphasized in the declarations. People focused exclusively on legal legitimacy."

Varaki. "People focused exclusively on legal legitimacy."

Dr. Shai Dothan is also examining the effectiveness of the ICC, but from a different perspective: that of a law and economy approach. Dothan is considering when the ICC should intervene in trials conducted against war criminals by some countries. "Two types of countries are subject to the authority of the ICC," Dothan argues. "Some countries will refrain from holding sham trials due to the quality of their judicial system, while others will be willing to hold such trials in order to serve their interests. If we assume that the ICC is unable to expose the sham nature of these trials, whether due to a lack of tools or a desire to avoid conflict, the question that arises is whether it should intervene in the trials of war criminals or give states an incentive to conduct trials themselves?."

Sigall Horovitz, a doctorate student and a member of the team, is also examining international criminal law, but is concentrating on the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. "I am examining the tribunal's effectiveness in terms of the securing of a specific goal: to promote reconciliation."

"Horovitz is considering how changes in the domestic legal system in Rwanda, such as the abolition of the death penalty and the prosecution of war criminals from the dominant Tutsi tribe, contributed to the process of reconciliation.

 "I spent two months in Rwanda," Horovitz explains, "and I undertook over 50 in-depth interviews with attorneys who represented the parties involved in the Tutsi trial, witnesses, prisoners whose death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment, victims, neighbors and community leaders. I also interviewed national leaders in order to gain a macro perspective."

The research does not only focus on international criminal law. For example, Sivan Shlomo-Agon, a doctorate student in the Faculty, is examining the dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization (WTO). "I show how the balance and emphasis on the goals changes in different types of disputes, depending on the challenges the dispute settlement system is required to confront." Shlomo-Agon adds that cases that do not fall into classic molds are the most relevant for her examination. "I am looking at disputes that involve commercial interests, on the one hand, together with other values, such as environmental protection, health, or human rights, on the other. In these disputes, the WTO has attempted to enhance its legitimacy in the broad sense – not only its legitimacy as a legal system, but the legitimacy of the WTO as a body."

A team meeting. "We already have graduates of the project working in the Ministry of Justice and at the Israeli embassy in The Hague."

Coming soon: The book

The project is entering its fifth and final year. Next year, Oxford University Press is due to publish a book summarizing the research findings. Apart from the book, the project has also had less direct outcomes. "One of the goals of this type of research group is to influence discourse in the country where the research takes place,"

"Our central argument is that tribunals must meet the expectations of those who founded them."

Professor Shany explains. "We already have graduates of the project working in the Ministry of Justice and at the Israeli embassy in The Hague. We have provided academic and practical tools for people who hope to work in the future in the field of international tribunals in Israel and around the world." 

The project members meet for a weekly discussion at which they review articles, projects and ideas of group members or others and engage in brainstorming. The interaction between the members of the group creates an encounter between different worlds. Some of the members of the group are not Israelis, and some of the foreign members participate in the meetings from abroad over the internet. The members also come from different academic disciplines, creating a further encounter. "One of the nice things about this project," Professor Shany concludes, "is the chance to work with all kinds of researchers from around the world. That's good for research, good for the Faculty, and good for the University."

From right: Shany, Horovitz, Shlomo-Agon and Varaki. "One of the goals… is to influence discourse in the country where the research takes place."

Justice, Justice Shall You Pursue (Deuteronomy 16:20)

The Hebrew University’s Minerva Center runs seminars, conferences and workshops to promote human rights * Sigall Horowitz, director of the Transitional Justice project, tells us about the latest conference * Tomer Haramati, a past participant in the transitional justice workshop, shares his unique experiences in Rwanda and Tanzania in a project run by the Minerva Center.

At the end of November 2012, the Minerva Center for Human Rights at the Hebrew University held a three-day conference on the subject of transitional justice, one of its areas of expertise. Sigall Horowitz, a doctorate student and teaching fellow in the faculty, is the director of the center’s Transitional Justice project and a research fellow in a project on effective international adjudication. Horowitz explains: “Transitional justice examines the legal approaches and the social non-legal approaches by which societies cope with past injustices in order to ensure a future of peace, democracy, the rule of law and respect for human lives.” The field relates to societies in transition from conflict or dictatorship that seek to move toward peace or democracy while addressing their past.

The conference examined the question as to how transitional justice is applied in a democracy, leads to democracy or encourages a return to democracy, and what tensions are encountered in these processes. Thirty experts from around the world attended the conference, including Dr. Tomer Brody, Dr. Guy Pessach and Professor Ruti Teitel ( a guest lecturer at the faculty this year). Among other issues, the conference discussed aspects of transitional justice in the Israeli context. In her lecture, Horowitz mentioned the official commission of inquiry to investigate the events of 2000 (the “Or Commission”) as an example of various mechanisms of transitional justice that have been applied in Israel.

“The Or Commission had individual objectives relating to personal liability, i.e. who attacked and why, but it also had broader social objectives, including recognition of the victims and the restitution of justice.” Horowitz explains that these broader objectives relate to the concept of transitional justice. The Minerva Center organizes numerous conferences in order to expose students to the issue and to expose the issue to the general public in Israel and the relevant international community. “This is an interdisciplinary field that also touches on international relations, political sciences and other disciplines,” Horowitz emphasizes. “People came from around the world to attend the conference, which was a serious and professional event.”
 

In addition to its impressive conferences, the Minerva Center also organizes seminars for the general public and workshops for faculty students. Each workshop focuses on a particular region of the world. Tomer Haramati, 28, a fourth-year law student, participated in a workshop two years ago on the subject of transitional justice in Rwanda. The workshop included 14 sessions and a ten-day tour of Rwanda and Tanzania. “On the academic level, the workshop exposed me to a fascinating new field. We aren’t used to thinking about law as a tool for promoting broad social values such as peace and reconciliation. You don’t really think about that as a law student, and this was something the appealed to me.”

The highpoint of the workshop was the tour, which included an examination of Rwanda as a case study. “Rwanda suffered an enormous disaster, and we were astonished by what they have achieved since,” Tomer relates. The civil war in Rwanda in 1994 included mass genocide that killed hundreds of thousands of people. “The situation in Rwanda is extreme, and accordingly the solutions are very broad based. The mechanisms of transitional justice have led people who murdered their neighbors to stand before their victims’ relatives,” Tomer adds. 

 

The “Gacaca” Courts – Social Healing

One of the main examples of a mechanism for transitional justice is the gacaca, a community court used to try defendants accused of genocide. The Rwandans took the brave but controversial decision that any person who played an active role in genocide was to be brought for trial. “This is a very extreme example of individual liability,” Tomer explains. “The result was that in a relatively small country with some 11 million inhabitants, hundreds of thousands of people had to be put on trial. It sounds impossible, but they managed to achieve it by the sophisticated use of community courts.” Tomer describes a situation whereby the entire village sits on the grass listening to evidence, hears the victim and the assailants, and reaches its verdict. People from different ethnic groups cooperated in a project that included the entire community. “Apart from the fact that this is an effective way to prosecute a large number of individuals, it also led to a kind of social healing. The prosecution did not come from above, from an international tribunal, but from the community itself,” Tomer emphasizes. This type of process can have far-reaching individual consequences. A person who was a victim is asked to forgive another person who murdered his family, or to live alongside him in the same village. This is obviously a demanding process: “It asks a lot of a society and of its individual members. We were astonished by the full complexity of this process,” Tomer recalls. This type of process inevitably creates tension between the international tribunal and the means of adjudication implemented in Rwanda: “

There are advantages in a situation where an international tribunal prosecutes some defendants, but the difficulty relates to the broader processes they are trying to promote,” Tomer notes. “If the ultimate goal is to bring society to a better place, then the judging need not necessarily be undertaken by an international tribunal.” During the tour, the group also visited the international tribunal in Tanzania. “It was very interesting to see how the tribunal workers and to see the representatives of the international community meeting to rule on cases,” Tomer notes. “This conveys a clear message, not only that the person has done something wrong, but that the international community has come in to declare that their actions are unacceptable.” Tomer heard the closing speech in one trial that had lasted for 11 years. “The man was a member of the ruling party that committed genocide and one of the main offenders responsible for the murder,” he emphasizes. “He made a closing speech on the subject of peace and reconciliation, which created a very strange situation for the Rwandans who had come to the trial and had seen the man’s earlier actions.”

The TIJ Mechanism – Rehabilitative Punishment

Some 20 years after the genocide, most of the offenders have been prosecuted and some are serving prison sentences. Tomer continues: “Another amazing thing we saw was punishment for the purpose of rehabilitation.” The Rwandans soon reached the conclusion that it was pointless imprisoning all the offenders, which would also have been impossibly expensive. “So they reached an arrangement where, instead of spending time in prison, people could be placed in other programs, provided they admitted their guilt. This was another mechanisms designed to encourage recognition of the crimes within society.” One of these rehabilitation frameworks is TIJ, which involves community service such as building roads and schools. “Our meeting with a TIJ group was one of the most meaningful experiences during the tour,” Tomer relates. The students met the group after they had already visited the areas affected by the genocide. “We came to the meeting with the TIJ group in a very charged emotional state. We were shattered by what we saw – simple, ordinary people. You look at them and don’t know what to feel – hatred or pity.” Tomer’s impression was that “they don’t even know why they did it. They don’t look like the sort of people you would imagine would commit premeditated murder. They look haunted.”

Tomer describes intense emotions that cannot be encountered in a classroom. “The direct personal contact makes you realize how complex these situations are. We tend to focus on the victims, but in the final analysis there is society as a whole, and the people who took part in the genocide are also part of society.” 

How do you move on from that kind of experience?

“I think we came out of it overwhelmed. The question now is what to do and how to do it. As complex as the situation is in Rwanda, at least we could see that something is working there. Twenty years ago no-one thought the country had a chance of recovery. What happened there was one of the worst crimes in history, but despite all the problems you can see that the country is functioning. Rwanda has one of the leading economies in Africa, the majority of its members of parliament are women, and it is at a very advanced stage of the process of reconciliation. People who underwent terrible abuses declare that they want to move forward – even if they don’t want to forgive, they realize that they have to. Even if they don’t want to see someone who committed crimes, there is no alternative. They accept it, even though it demands a very high personal price.” For Tomer, the tour was a profoundly personal experience. “They invested a lot of resources in this tour and it gives you a great deal on the personal level. I hope I will be able to apply this in the positions I fill in the future.” 

Researchers in the Field / Adam Hofri-Winogradow

Many researchers compete for the prestigious grants awarded by the Israel Science Foundation (ISF). The ISF is the main state body responsible for supporting academic research in Israel. The competition is based on criteria of scientific excellence and includes diverse research fields. Dr. Adam Hofri-Winogradow, a senior faculty member, is one of the lucky few who have received a substantial grant from the ISF.

In 2009, Hofri-Winogradow requested funding from the ISF for a study examining the use of trusts in Mandate Palestine and the State of Israel. The research project was focused on legal history, with economic history angles. “In 2010, I received a substantial four-year grant of over NIS 400,000. To the best of my knowledge, this was the largest grant the ISF had, to that time, awarded a legal scholar,” Hofri-Winogradow recalls. Legal scholars who manage to secure ISF grants usually receive smaller sums than members of other academic faculties. Needless to say, the grant is not a personal gift to the scholar; it is used to cover various costs, such as research assistants' salaries.

We asked Hofri-Winogradow whether the State of Israel should be investing NIS 400,000 in legal research. “In some legal fields,” he replied, “such as freedom of expression and other aspects of constitutional law, the quantity of research is enormous.

However, in some other fields, fields that attorneys and accountants encounter in their daily work, there is hardly any research.” To date, trust law has barely featured in legal studies and research in Israel. “I searched high and low for material, and discovered that the field has been badly neglected in the past. When Israeli  university faculties and non-university law schools provide trusts courses, they are usually given by external lecturers rather than faculty members,” Hofri-Winogradow explains. While trusts practice is varied and increasing, the discipline has rarely been engaged by academics. 

We asked Dr. Hofri-Winogradow to tell us a little more about the contents of his research project. The project is divided into several articles, some of which have already been published (e.g., in the Law and History Review) while others are due to appear (e.g., in Law and Social Inquiry).

One part of Hofri's research project examines the uses to which Zionist settlers in Mandate Palestine put private trusts. Hofri-Winogradow has discovered that “during the British Mandate, the Supreme Court ruled that private trusts were not then a part of the law of Palestine. Yet Zionist settlers were then making extensive use of trusts, including private trusts.” Even more interestingly,  settlers used trusts to transfer the assets of Germany's persecuted Jews to Mandate Palestine. Hofri-Winogradow explains: “Until the outbreak of the Second World War, Jews could leave Germany but were forced to leave their money and assets behind. Besides the quota system, the British only allowed people to immigrate to Palestine who had a minimum sum of money, which was gradually increased. Accordingly, a Catch 22 situation developed that made it very difficult for Jews to leave Nazi Germany.” The World Zionist Organization created a complex legal structure based on the trust model, thereby enabling some 52,000 Jews to immigrate to Mandate Palestine and bring a large proportion of their assets along.

Another part of Hofri's research project presents a legislative history of the Trusts Act of 1979. “I wanted to expose how our Trusts Act acquired its unprecedented features,” Hofri-Winogradow explains. It emerges that the drafting process took no less than 14 years. The unusual solution incorporated in the Act reflected  Israeli practice more than the orthodox conceptual foundations of the trust, as developed in English or American law. “The Israeli Act is highly unusual, and is, surprisingly, similar to the 2001 Trust Act  [信托法, Xintuo Fa] of the People’s Republic of China,” says Hofri-Winogradow.

The third and final part of Hofri's project is not a piece of legal history. It examines the construction of Israel's trusts taxation regime, added to the Income Tax Ordinance in 2005. “Until 2005, the subject was not fully regulated in Israel,” Hofri-Winogradow recalls. “Many legal experts and professionals reached a conclusion that  irrevocable trusts were tax-exempt, so long as they were not dedicated for unmarried beneficiaries aged 20 or less. Such trusts were therefore  a loophole in the Israeli tax system.” The use of such trusts was one mechanism facilitating Israel’s transition from a poor, socialist society to a richer, less egalitarian one. “When the Tax Authority finally began to formulate a trusts taxation regime in 2002, two attorneys and an accountant who were active in exploiting this loophole joined the Authority’s representatives to work on a legislative regime  closing it down.” Hofri-Winogradow continues: “How did it transpire that private professionals who had profited from a situation where there was no taxation acted in a manner that was contrary to the interests of some of their clients?” He argues that the state needed professionals capable of cracking the tough nut of trusts taxation. “The Tax Authority managed to encourage three professionals to distinguish between their clients’ interests and their own, and to help develop a complex new regime which itself created plenty of work for lawyers and accountants.”

According to Hofri-Winogradow, trust law has so far largely remained “under the academic radar” in Israel. His study is unique in dealing with both the mid-20th-Century realization of Zionism and the current hot-button issue  of Israel's increasingly inegalitarian society. Trusts were and are central to both processes. “The trust is one of the main tools used by High Net Worth Individuals in order to retain and increase their worth,” he concludes.

The American Media and the US Supreme Court – An Inside Look / Interview with Dahlia Lithwick

Dahlia Lithwick, an American journalist who covers the US Supreme Court for Slate magazine, will be teaching a course this year at the faculty. The course examines the attitude of the American media toward the Supreme Court – an attitude Lithwick describes as “a case of Stockholm Syndrome.” 

Every year the Law Faculty at the Hebrew University invites several guest lecturers from overseas to teach courses for the students on selected subjects. The guests come from diverse fields of law and include judges and academics. One of this year’s guest lecturers is the journalist Dahlia Lithwick, senior editor with the well-known online magazine Slate. Lithwick, who was the first internet journalist to cover the US Supreme Court, will teach a course on the special relationship between the court and the staff of journalists that report on it.

What is unique about the journalistic reporting in the United States?

“The American press is biased in favor of the Supreme Court and the myth the court seeks to project.”

What do you mean?

“The myth of the justices as apolitical beings – as if when they put on their black gowns they no longer have an ideology or agenda and merely decide according to the law.”

Dahlia mentions in particular the confirmation hearings of justices in the US Supreme Court, events she describes as a “week-long media circus.”

What is the origin of this attitude?

“Americans are very romantic, particularly when it comes to the Supreme Court,” she explains. “It’s a kind of secular religion. Even the Supreme Court building has the architectural appearance of a church or Greek temple. I think Israelis would laugh if they saw it.”

Is this image a good thing or a bad thing?

“Both. It’s good because it strengthens the independence of the judiciary. But at the same time it is unrealistic to imagine that judges do not have their own ideology. We need to be critical and to recognize that the court has a strong influence, precisely because of its romantic perception as a symbol.”

How does the American press shape this image?

“It protects the myth,” Dahlia claims. “You have to understand that we are talking about a relatively small group of journalists, on the one hand, but one that is extremely focused. There are no more than 40 or so journalists who report on the Supreme Court, and most of them have been doing it for decades.”

You are yourself part of the staff of journalists that reports on the Supreme Court. How do you assess the working process from the inside?

“Remember that the Supreme Court in the United States is very different from what you are familiar with in Israel. It processes about 70 cases a year, and it is only active for few months a year. You might think that we have a lot of spare time on our hands, but we make up for it by preparing in-depth reports. In order to report properly on the Supreme Court, I really think it is important to read all the material, all the decisions and rulings on any given subject.”

How would you characterize the journalists’ attitude toward the court?

“I’d describe it as a case of ‘Stockholm Syndrome.’ They are trapped in the myth. There is a kind of gentlemen’s agreement that the journalist is committed to protecting the Supreme Court’s legitimacy and image.”

How is this approach manifested?

“One way is the selection of subjects to be covered. The journalists report on the Supreme Court as if the law itself is a living entity. The judges do not form part of the reporting. There is a kind of silent agreement that any report about the judges as individuals is considered gossip rather than real journalism.”

Female Judging and Male Judging

At the same time as teaching the course on the attitude of the media toward the US Supreme Court, Lithwick is also writing a book examining the attitude of the American public toward the women Supreme Court justices. “Israelis may take this for granted, for the situation is different with Americans,” she suggests.”Today, there are three women justices, and in the court’s entire history there have been just four. This subject is the focus of lively debate among the American public.”

What specific question are you exploring?

“The question is whether women judge in a different way from men. This question arose in the past when Justice O’Connor was the first female justice on the Supreme Court. Academics discussed the question whether female judging would be different. But then Justice Ginsburg was appointed, and it emerged that she did not agree with Justice O’Connor on anything.”

Is this line of discourse still being pursued?

“Sure. When they asked President Obama for his opinion of the Supreme Court, he argued that the court lacks empathy. Many people connected this comment with femininity, and it’s true that Obama has appointed two female justices, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.”

Basically this brings us back to the question as to whether justices have an agenda.

“Right. Until now, Americans have not tended to examine the justices’ background too closely – whether Catholic justices make different decisions than their Protestant or Jewish peers. But clearly it has an impact. Justice Ginsburg is due to retire, and people have asked whether it is important that her replacement also be a woman, which brings us back to the concept of female judging. I am examining whether and how women judge differently, and whether this is a good thing.”

Lithwick was born and raised in Canada but later moved to the United States, studying at Yale and Stanford before beginning work in a law firm specializing in divorce law. “I found the work very unpleasant,” she recalls, “and eventually I quit. I remained jobless for a brief time until I happened to be in Washington DC while the Supreme Court was hearing the Microsoft antitrust case. Slate magazine asked me to cover the case, and later I became a regular reporter. I’ve been covering the Supreme Court for 13 years now.”

What made you decide to teach the course?

“This isn’t my first position as a teacher. I have already taught similar versions of my courses at University of Georgia and University of Virginia. I like teaching. Students have an ambivalent attitude toward the court and its ethos. They know that it’s unrealistic to expect judges to be completely neutral, but they would still like to believe that this is the case.”

Why did you come to Israel?

“For several reasons. Firstly, I have two children aged 7 and 9 and I wanted them to spend a year in Israel. My parents are also here, so they get to spend a year with their grandchildren. Another reason is because of my book – I knew that if I stayed in America I wouldn’t get any writing done.”

What about the course?

“Professor David Enoch heard that I was planning to spend the year in Israel and invited me to teach the course. I was really pleased, because I knew that otherwise I would just spend the whole day at home working on my book, and I’d slowly lose my mind.”

A New Law Faculty Member / An Interview with Professor Eliezer Rivlin

Professor Eliezer Rivlin, Deputy President (retired) of the Supreme Court, has joined the Faculty * We interviewed Professor Rivlin after he gave a lecture to the Legal Club of Faculty alumni and members * Professor Rivlin discussed his return to the academic world

Professor Rivlin only recently joined the Faculty, but he already had a chance to participate in the February meeting of the Legal Club, which brings together alumni and Faculty members. The meeting was hosted by the Nazareth Bar and focused mainly on issues from the field of damages law. The lecturers included the dean of the Law Faculty, Professor Yuval Shany, as well as Professors Israel Gilad and Khaled Husni Zoabi. The meeting ended with audience contributions, providing an opportunity for the alumni to share their views and thoughts.

"“Some of the participants in the event were my students during my earlier work in teaching,” Professor Rivlin relates. As will already be apparent, Professor Rivlin is no newcomer to academic life. For several years, and alongside his work as a judge, Rivlin taught various courses at our Faculty and in Tel Aviv University and the College of Administration. However, after his appointment to the Supreme Court he was no longer able to perform both functions. Rivlin has now retired from his position as Deputy President of the Court, and from the next academic year he will begin to teach a seminar together with Professor Barak Medina on the subject of constitutional issues, as well as a course on advanced issues in damages law.

Is there any added value in having Faculty members who have also worked in the legal system?

 
"“I think the combination of theory and practice is one that interests the students. It helps them to  be exposed to the perspective of someone who has put legal theory into practice and to learn how legal principles, theories and rules are actually implemented by the courts.”

What is the main difference between legal practice and academic work?

"“With hindsight, I can see a difference in terms of legal practice between the period when I worked in primary legal instances and my period on the Supreme Court. In the Supreme Court the point of gravity in the judicial work restswith the legal analisis hereas in the primary courts the focus is on the  reading the facts, managing the trial, processing the factual data, and drawing conclusions. Another difference is that the Supreme Court rulings constitute a binding precedent and effectively establish legal rules. This in itself means often that the Supreme Court engages in very extensive research, which brings us back to the academic field. This process of research touches on a wide range of fields. Personally, I found this combination of academia and practice very important . The transition now isn’t particularly dramatic for me, since I taught for extended periods in the past. Even during my time on the Supreme Court I felt that I was involved in the academic side of the profession.”

Professor Eliezer Rivlin

So I gather that there are many similarities between work on the Supreme Court and academic work. 
           

"“We can see a welcome tendency in Israel that is not found in other legal systems to quote academic articles and literature in the court rulings themselves – and particularly to quote Israeli academics. Many rulings draw on academic work. In my opinion this is an interesting and welcome phenomenon. It creates mutual feedback and both sides can only benefit from this situation. Academia learns from court rulings,  it also studies and criticizes them.”

What is your impression of the future generation of jurists here in the Faculty?

"“I don’t want to compare one generation to another, but we have an excellent generation of students here now. It’s interesting to teach them because they bring fascinating insights, criticism and theoretical analysis. Teaching methods have changed, of course, and we also have a new generation of lecturers. My impression is that there is a very high standard of critical thoughts, and presumably this is a tool that has been acquired in the Faculty of Law. When we discuss court rulings in class, it’s clear that the students have read the rulings critically and intelligently. I think that when they reach the stage in life when they begin to put their ideas down in writing, they will find the courts very receptive to what they have to say.”

In what ways do you think the teaching methods have changed?

"“There’s a stronger emphasis now on a multidisciplinary approach, which wasn’t the case in my day. The legal profession used to be taught in isolation, without any multidisciplinary references. Things have changed, of course, and now we have programs that combine law with economics, psychology, feminism, and so forth. These combinations add numerous aspects and tools to law itself. For example, the economic analysis of law provides tools that enhance our understanding of the consequences of the judicial act. Judges naturally continue to be responsible for applying normative decisions, but methods such as law and psychology, law and economics, can provide tools for understanding the ramifications of these decisions in the field.”

Do you have any expectations as you return to the academic world?

"“The main thing is that I have come back to a field that I like. I feel that I have come home. I always thought that when I grew up I would be a university professor. Well, I’ve certainly grown up now and I can realize my dream of teaching at university as my main occupation.”

“It’s Only Human to Cry, So I Did” – An Intern Discusses His Experiences at the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia 
           

Many students are interested in working somewhere where they can gain legal experience * Somewhere where they can have an influence and change things while at the same time having an interesting work experience * Somewhere that has good human relations and dynamic and professional atmosphere * This may sound like a pipedream, but perhaps not * Internships at international criminal tribunals are one of the options the Faculty offers that may make the dream come true

“’It’s only human to cry, so I did,’” says Chanchalu, his voice cracking and his stomach churning as he stands before the tribunal. Sitting in the courtroom, I also couldn’t stop my tears. But the attorneys warn us interns not to let our emotions show… So instead of crying I’m writing, in the hope that what I write will manage to convey the story of the victims of the horrors in Yugoslavia and to bring their words to wider audiences. I hope I can help to promote the important heritage of the international criminal tribunals and to encourage a different and more positive kind of discourse in Israel regarding the goals and significance of these bodies.”

The above piece was written by Asaf Lubin, aged 27, a fourth-year student in the Faculty. Lubin participated in a three-month internship in the office of the prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague. He agreed to share with us some of his thoughts following this powerful professional and emotional experience.

How did you find yourself in this program?    

"“I had already participated in a similar program at the Law Faculty run by the Minerva Center which placed students on internships in the international tribunal in Rwanda. The tribunal has completed its work and is about to be closed. At the time there wasn’t another program of this kind in the Faculty (although they are now working on a new program), so I applied independently to the International Tribunal in The Hague. I don’t receive academic credit for the internship, but the Faculty supports my participation, allowing me to take the third exam sittings and providing various other benefits. The Faculty encourages students to participate in these kinds of programs, even though they are not held under its auspices. The internships are unpaid. If anyone’s interested in applying, it isn’t as expensive as it sounds. An apartment in The Hague cost me 300 euro a month – less than in Jerusalem. The Foreign Ministry can also provide scholarships.”

What does the internship involve?            

“I was allocated to the prosecution against Ratko Mladi?, the former Bosnian-Serb chief-of-staff during the civil war in Bosnia in 1992-1995. My job was to prepare the prosecution file for the evidence stage. Every day we presented one or two witnesses. I had to prepare a whole group of witnesses. I’d sit with the witness, listen to their story, prepare the questions with the attorney and prepare the witness to answer the defense’s questions. I was under the authority of a woman who’s responsible for the interns and she manages the work. I also had a mentor who I met with at the beginning, middle and end of the internship. The mentor gives you tools, tips and letters of recommendation as is supposed to continue to help you as you develop your professional career.”

What does an intern’s typical day look like?   

“The working hours are from 9 am to 5:30 pm. It’s a very social working environment. The interns work in huge rooms with an average of 12 to 15 interns per room. They’re all about the same age as you and they come from all around the world. The tribunal itself operates until 2 pm. In the morning you might already have your suit on and be on your way to the tribunal, or you might be preparing files for the attorney. There are also all kinds of procedural tasks, such as preparing summaries of testimonies or what they call ‘disclosure charts’ containing the material that is disclosed to the defense.”

How do you manage to learn the procedural rules you need to follow? 

“The internship mirrors the things you learned in the Faculty. Before I’d even done my internship in Israel, I was already writing an application to the tribunal to summons a witness, filing an application to remove witness protection, and so forth. The tools I acquired in the Faculty, particularly in Gil-Ad Noam’s course on international criminal law, were very useful. During the first few weeks of the internship they provide courses explaining the system, and a lot of times a more experience intern works with a newcomer. Just before I completed my internship a new intern from Belgium arrived and she used to ask me questions. Within three or four weeks you understand everything that’s going on around you.

Did you encounter any difficulties? 

“Some of the projects, such as updating the systems, are very technical and fairly exhausting. After all, you’re only an intern. But there are moments when you can truly stop and say that you did something meaningful. For me, these were the moments when I worked with the witnesses and prepared papers that later became official prosecution documents. Another difficulty is that the work is very emotionally draining, because most of the witnesses are victims. I think that side of the work gave me a new perspective on our own history as a people and on the significance of international criminal law. One witnesses worked in a hospital and lost her legs after she was struck by a mortar. During her testimony, Mladi? interrupted and cursed her. I couldn’t believe it. You can also look at it from the theoretical angle: does someone like him really deserve due process of law? The detention center in The Hague is by the sea and the inmates have courses in arts and crafts. You find yourself wondering whether they really deserve such good conditions. But there aren’t any right answers. Your emotions become mixed up with questions of justice, revenge and deterrence – all the themes you study in the first-year course in penal law.”

Are there also interns on the defense side? 

“The defense has a separate department, a kind of public defense mechanism that is based in The Hague and sends attorneys to the various tribunals. It’s hard for me to imagine how someone can work as an intern for the defense.”

In what ways does the experience differ from international law studies in the Faculty? 

“Imagine yourself sitting a couple of meters away from someone who was directly involved in managing genocide. The name Ratko Mladi? doesn’t mean much to us, but for the average Bosnian it’s not all that different from hearing the name Hitler. You sit really close to him, and he shows no shame at all. He is very loud and the judges often threatened to remove him or accuse him of contempt of court.”

What are the main things you have learned? 

“I have learned that the wheels of justice really do turn very slowly. Before I went to the tribunal, I thought that I was going to write the next Tadi? ruling – one of the most important rulings in international law. Even at this stage I can tell you that it’s not going to happen! I’m dealing far more than I expected with the procedures that determine what can present with the witness. It become more about procedure than substance. On the first day when I saw all the Excel files of evidence I had to cope with, I wondered what I was doing here.”

What was your answer to that question? 

“As an experience it is one of the most amazing things I’ll take with me from my academic studies. Working with the witnesses was the real core of the internship: that’s where I realized what it means. What I’m doing is much bigger than some legal rule I read about in a textbook. This is the human significance of the work of the International Criminal Tribunal. I didn’t realize just how powerful this dimension is until I came here.”

Apart from the relatively low cost of living, what else does The Hague have to offer? 

“The Hague is a city of interns. At any given time there are 400-450 interns from all around the world working in dozens of different tribunals, some of which we barely think about, such as the Lebanese tribunal established following the assassination of Hariri. The atmosphere is a bit like an American college. Every day the interns go out together. They have their own weekly newspaper and of course there’s TND – Thursday Night Drinks. Apart from that, The Hague is a beautiful city. Everything’s close by. Amsterdam is only thirty minutes away and you can easily take weekend trips to German, Belgium and France.”

Who is right for this internship? 

“I’ve never been on a student exchange, so for me this was an opportunity to get to know students from around the world and to learn about different legal cultures and approaches. I think this is important for everyone, even if you aren’t planning a future in international law. For students who are interested in the field, I think it’s pretty much a must. This experience is vital for MA studies in international law and for future work in the United Nations, for those thinking of that direction. The time spent in the tribunal counts as double time because it’s already a United Nations framework. It’s also a great professional experience for anyone who’s interested in criminal law. Most of the attorneys on the team aren’t international lawyers – some of them didn’t even take the international law course in their faculty. To sum up, I would say that it’s a great experience, and if you have the opportunity – go for it!”

Researchers in the Field / Empirical Legal Center for Research Excellence 
           

The first center for research excellence to be established by the Council for Higher Education in the legal field will be based at the Hebrew University. The center, which will include researchers from various faculties in the Hebrew University and the Technion, will focus on empirical research examining decision-making processes in the legal field. Professor Eyal Zamir and Dr. Doron Teichman of the Law Faculty explain the process that led to the establishment of the center and the studies it will pursue.

“The main contribution the center makes is to provide a more stable foundation for future legal thought.” This was the summary offered by Professor Eyal Zamir regarding the importance of the new Excellence Center for Research in the Hebrew University – the first of its kind in Israel. The center is headed by Professor Ilana Ritov of the university’s School of Education and Cognition Studies, and focuses on empirical legal research.           

The new center was established as part of the second wave of the I-CORE program (Israeli Center for Research Excellence), which was initiated in 2010. The program has already established 15 centers for excellence in various fields and serves as a flagship project channeling significant funds for academic research in Israel. In addition to promoting research, the program also encourages the recruitment of new faculty members, including Israeli academics who have left the country as part of the “brain drain” phenomenon. Dr. Yonatan Givati, for example, has returned from his doctoral studies at Harvard Law School and Harvard Economics Department and will be joining the new center of excellence. The members of the center will receive research grants in order to enable them to devote themselves to their research work.

How did you initiate your proposal?

“A preliminary request for proposals was issued to examine relevant issues,” says Teichman, a member of the team that drafted the proposal. “This was basically a brainstorming process, and of about 1,200 ideas 18 were selected. One of them was empirical legal research. Over 60 proposals were submitted in the various fields, and finally 11 were chosen.”            

Were you surprised when you won?

“Actually,” Zamir admits, “when we received the report on our preliminary proposal we did not think we would win. We improved our proposal in line with the comments we received on the pre-proposal and eventually won the grant.”
           

Dr. Doron Teichman

The new Center for Research Excellence (CRE) promotes an interdisciplinary approach. In addition to its head Professor Ritov, the members include several other researchers from non-legal fields: Dr. Assaf Zussman and Dr. Moshe Shayo of the Economics Department; Professor Yishai Yaffe, dean of the School of Business Administration; and two professors from the Technion – Ido Erev and Eldad Yechiam. In addition to Zamir and Teichman, Professor Alon Harel and Professor Assaf Hamdani of the Law Faculty are also members of the center.

How did this team come together?

“Our goal was to create a team with a common methodological approach,” Teichman explains. “We might disagree on specific issues, but the proposal itself focuses on the examination of the decision-making process. Eyal and I worked with Ilana Ritov, who is an expert on decision making, and together we decided to look for people who would be suited to this framework.”

What will the center do?

“We will engage in the empirical study of economic and behavioral analysis,” says Teichman. “Our work will focus to a large extent on economics and psychology. We want to examine dimensions of rationality and irrationality in decision making.”

Zamir expands: “You can divide empirical studies into two and half types. The first type consists of empirical studies that seek to create and analyze the largest possible database about a given reality in order to see how law affects that field. The problem is that it is very difficult to isolate the different factors explaining outcomes. The second type is experimental, focusing on an examination of the differences between a trial group and a control group. In experimental studies, one can isolate the effect of specific variables, though sometimes the external validity of the findings, outside of the laboratory, is unclear.”

What about the half type?

“That’s an attempt to take the best of both worlds – randomized field experiments. We go into the field and try to introduce random changes in order to examine their impact on reality. This solves the problems of identification and validation.” 
           

By way of example, Teichman describes a study undertaken by Zussman: “he publishes a sales advertisement on various online boards and examines whether the seller’s name influences the number of calls received. All the other details in the advertisements are identical. So far, it seems that advertisements with Arab names receive fewer calls. After he discovered this, he started to look into private advertisements without names, and found that a disproportionate number of these were placed by Arabs.”

 
Replacing Intuition with Information 
           

The CRE is a collection of several researchers under a single roof. The methodological format is unified, but the studies themselves vary. 
           

“One of my studies, for example,” says Teichman, “examined a question that relates both to law and society and to law and economics. I investigated why Israelis quote prices in dollars in real estate transactions. This seems strange, since signing an agreement in foreign currency incurs risks. Such behavior is rational in conditions of hyperinflation or when the central bank controls foreign currency, as was the case in the past in Israel. But this phenomenon continued even though Israel has adopted a free market model and the inflation rate was dramatically lowered.”

Professor Eyal Zamir

What did you discover?

“This phenomenon continued to be seen until the subprime crisis and the fall in the dollar. I looked at archives of real estate advertisements and found that within a few months they all switched from dollars to shekels.”            

Did you investigate why this happened?

“In my interviews I realized that people still think about their apartments in dollar terms. This may be a case of status quo bias – switching from dollars to shekels constituted a change, and people are reluctant to make changes. As a result people made inefficient contracts until they learned the hard way and lost large sums of money.”

Zamir gives an example of a study that leans more to the experimental side. Zamir, Teichman and Ritov “presented the respondents with a scene where someone has been caught speeding at night. We asked whether they would convict the person. In half of the questionnaires the person was caught by a speed camera, while in the other half two cameras at different points recorded the precise time in which the car passed by them, so that the speed could be calculated according to the distance between the two cameras and the time elapsed. There was a huge difference in the willingness to convict the offender in favor of the speed camera. A series of similar experiments established that there seems to be a psychological pattern – people are hesitant to convict someone on the basis of an inference, even when the objective probability and the subjective probability estimates are similar.”

Is this phenomenon seen in the contemporary legal world?

“In some cases the legislator defines offenses relating to behaviors that don’t really bother us that much, such as possessing stolen goods or being found near a bank with a tool that could be used for burglary. The legislator is concerned that the judge will not draw the conclusion that someone who possesses stolen goods is a thief, so it solves the inference dilemma.” 
           

Does this mean that future legal experts will be statisticians?

“Legal thought includes a very strong normative foundation: what goals and values do you want to promote? These studies mustn’t be seen as competition for legal thinking: they are merely an addition. They will never replace conventional legal thought, but they will replace intuition with information. It is important to recall that intuition is merely the first step in the process of legal thought.”

Students

Who am I? Benjamin (“Binny”) Ashkenazi

Age: 27

Year: 3

The facts: Binny began his academic adventure at the College of Administration in Rishon Lezion. He explains that he didn’t have an easy ride: “I have a learning disability and I had to struggle really hard to get here, because my psychometric score is fairly low.” Binny went to the Knesset Education, Culture and Sport Committee and overcame countless obstacles before he achieved his goal of being accepted by the Hebrew University Law Faculty. “From the moment I got to the College of Administration I worked to get the highest possible grades so that I could switch to the university,” he recalls. Although he was rejected the first time he applied, Binny did not give up: “I contacted the rector and the dean of students, and eventually I submitted an appeal to the Evaluation Committee for Learning Disabilities in the Law Faculty,” he explains. Binny’s story had a happy ending: the university eventually accepted him. “Class began on Sunday, and I only heard on Thursday that I had been accepted. 

Shoshi Ben-Amram, the coordinator of undergraduate studies, suddenly called me and told me to come up to Jerusalem so she could prepare a study timetable for me.” Binny stresses that the way he was treated by the Hebrew University was the best of all the universities he applied to. Binny’s main motive for moving was the tuition fee, which is about one-fourth of that in the college, but he has other reasons to be pleased with the change: “The market is saturated and if you want to find a good internship the reputation of the Hebrew University gives you a good start.”

Binny is originally from Jerusalem, so the move was also a homecoming to his natural environment. When we asked him about the difference in the level of studies, Binny replied: “I couldn’t claim that the effort I have to make at the Hebrew University is the same as at the College of Administration. The reading material is similar, but the grade standardization system and the generally stronger starting point of the students in the Hebrew University makes it more demanding here.” Students moving from a college to the Hebrew University might be nervous about how they will settle in, but Binny says that things went smoothly: “People weren’t arrogant: everyone was very friendly and helpful. Sometimes we got into arguments about the differences in the standard of studies, but we always ended it amicably. After all, I’m better placed to make the comparison since I’m familiar with both institutions.”

Why law? “Because I have a learning disability, I knew that I couldn’t go for the sciences,” Binny explains. Binny considered the humanities, but was unsure whether that would provide a decent living. He looked for a related field, and today he declares that he is happy with his choice – “even though I sometimes curse myself when it comes to exam time.”

A second hearing: Binny is participating in a clinic on the rights of people with disabilities and is also working in the Israel Bar’s program “Give and Get,” in which students represent disadvantaged clients in civil cases. “I have been exposed to a very wide range of cases and I’ve met the finest side of the legal profession. I often ask myself whether the law does more good than bad, and through this work I have been pleased to see the good side,” he smiles. Binny explains how he helped a man to reduce his debt significantly. He also helped another man who was on the verge of bankruptcy. “Sometimes you can see that they are simply disorganized, so you sit with them, get things in order and that can be enough to save them. You see good people who find themselves fighting bureaucracy. Even as an upstart undergraduate, you realize how much power you have and how much you can do to help them.”

Who am I? Lior Mizrachi

Age: 26

Year: 3

Why law? Lior is combining her studies of law with social work. This is an unusual combination, but she explains: “For me, social work was a natural choice. Both my parents are social workers who are employed in community centers, so I was following in their footsteps.” She adds that since it was so obvious that she would study social work, she wanted more of a challenge. When she heard about the combined law and social work program she was very excited. “Law is a very important tool for advancing the goals of social work,” she declares. “In that sense, it’s a very logical combination.”

The facts: Lior is not only studying the theoretical aspects of her interesting combination. She is also putting her beliefs into practice in the field, participating in a project of the organization Ma’aglei Tzedek (“Circles of Justice”) called The Gatewatchers. The project works with school security guards in Jerusalem. “The volunteers go to schools an preschools, talk to the guards and give them leaflets explaining their rights,” Lior says. “We also check how they are treated and suggest that they keep a record of the hours they work.” The guards can bring their salary slips to be checked, and the volunteers look for any violations of labor laws. “We find plenty of violations,” Lior says decisively. The goal is to make the guards aware of the possibility of asking the security company to correct violations, and of suing them if they fail to do so. “I was shocked to see how the companies make money at their employees’ expense,” Lior says sadly. “The guards are not usually aware of their rights and don’t know how to fight for them.” This work does not require legal knowledge or expertise in social work, but both fields certainly enhance the project’s effectiveness. Analyzing pay slips requires an understanding of labor law. Although working with people and gaining their trust are partly a function of personality, Lior emphasizes that “I come to these meetings with all that I have learned.”

A second hearing: In her spare time, Lior also works as a professional Pilates instructor. In her first year she started a group in her living room, and she now teaches three groups in her home and two in a studio at the Bank of Israel. In addition to education to healthy living, Lior is also works as a teacher in civics and democracy classes in the Knesset and the courts. Groups of 9th-12th graders participate in guided tours and workshops on such subjects as freedom of expression, the rule of law, Israel’s electoral system, and so forth. “As an instructor, I feel that I can influence young people even in such a short timeframe,” Lior explains. “My main message is that it’s always important to keep up to date, to read the news, and to realize that we can influence things.” Although Lior admits that all her extracurricular activities leave her little time to rest, she says that gets much satisfaction from her areas of involvement.

Who am I? Tom Kovatchy

Age: 25

Year: 2

Why law? “I never considered anything else,” Tom admits. “I always tried to decide what area would enable me to change society,” he declares, adding that he doesn’t imagine that he will work in the private sector. Tom originally comes from Rosh Pina in the far north of Israel, and it was no coincidence that he chose Jerusalem. He claims that of all the Israeli cities that have universities, Jerusalem is the least like a big city. “Here I feel that people live together and not on their own. Unlike Tel Aviv, in Jerusalem people eat Friday night dinner together and there’s a feeling of togetherness.”


           

The facts: Over the past year, as part of his effort to get to know the university and the city, Tom has worked as a guide in the Faculty’s Orientation Week. The orientation guides accompany new students from the moment they are admitted to the Faculty. During the week before the beginning of the academic year, all the new students come to the Faculty for an intensive three-day orientation program. They tour the campus and the city, including a visit to the Supreme Court. Tom explains that this orientation process helps ensure that the new students have a soft landing. “We work with the freshmen from the stage when they have to decide where to live through to questions about combining law with another field or what bus to take. We even give them a recipe for meatballs,” he laughs. Each guide is responsible for approximately 35 students, and the process does not end in Orientation Week. “We help them with all kinds of things in the Faculty, including how to study, how to read rulings and how to start writing essays.”

We asked Tom what skills make a good orientation guide: “The main thing is to be sensitive to others’ needs,” he states. “I don’t think you necessarily have to be the best student. It really doesn’t matter what grade you got in your contract law paper. You need a lot of patience and perseverance.” Tom describes the tremendous sense of satisfaction he gets from this involvement, and even claims that he would be willing to do it for free. “About a year and a half after the orientation, students still come to ask my advice. When I manage to solve a problem I feel really great.” Tom apparently willing to confine his involvement to the orientation program, as he also decided to join a program that helps students for whom Hebrew is a foreign language. “As a Hebrew speaker the first year was hard enough for me, so I could only imagine how hard it would be for someone whose mother tongue isn’t Hebrew,” he explains.

A second hearing: Ask any of Tom’s friends about him and the first thing you’ll hear is that he’s a passionate fan of Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team. “When I was four years old,” he recalls, “I asked my father what team we supported. Since then I’ve traveled from Rosh Pina and Jerusalem to every match.” But Tom isn’t just a regular fan on the stands. He is active in the “Emblem Brothers” project, an association of people who met at the team’s matches. “A few guys decided they wanted to do more than just watch matches together,” Tom explains. “At Rosh Hashanah they collected donations for the needy, Holocaust survivors and hostels for people at risk.” The project has distributed blankets in winter and collected food parcels before Passover. Anyone is welcome to join in the activities, even if they aren’t a fan of Maccabi Tel Aviv. “I guess it builds a sense of solidarity, because when we meet at matches there’s something special about it,” Tom concludes.

Who am I? Avigail Leonarons

Age: 22

Year: 2

The facts: Avigail, a native Jerusalemite, is studying law and political science, but still finds time to be very active in the sports. This year, for example, she participated in the Jerusalem Marathon for the second time, and she even encouraged some of her friends from the Faculty to join her.

Why law? “I always found law interesting but I was afraid that maybe it was just a way to make money from other people’s troubles. Then I met a lawyer who worked in an American association and represents children and battered women. I realized that I could use law studies as a tool for fighting for justice.” Avigail is combing her law studies with a bachelor’s degree in political science. “I wanted to learn something else, too,” she recalls. What about plans for the future? “I don’t know exactly where I see myself, but I’m pretty sure it will be in the public sector.”

A second hearing: Avigail was an avid sportswoman before she started university. “I’ve played sport for as long as I can remember. In the past I danced and played basketball. Today my main field if cycling. I ride to university even in the rainy Jerusalem winter. I don’t think I’ve used the bus more than a dozen times all year. Even when I start to work as an attorney I hope that I’ll find time to ride to court, just as I ride now to the district court as part of my volunteering at the Breira Center.”

What about running? “I try to run twice a week, and even more often when I’m preparing for examinations, because you can’t just sit and study all day. For me, running is the greatest pleasure of the exam period. I get up in the morning and decide that I’m going to study until a set time and then go running. It helps to break the day up into different sections.” Avigail participated in the marathon this year for the second time. “My family and I trying to establish a tradition of running together in the marathon,” she explains. “We did the 10-kilometer run together – my sister and brother and me. There’s a great atmosphere in the marathon – it’s fun to see so many people coming together to engage in sport.”

The Internship Chase: Alumni Stories

There are almost 16,000 law students in Israel * After they graduate, most of them hope to find the best possible internship * Four Faculty graduates who are currently working as interns tell us about their choices and offer some tips for future interns

The third year students in the Faculty are currently choosing their internship for next year. While some students are certain that they want to specialize in the private or public sector, others are still unsure what direction they want to take. We spoke to four Faculty graduates who have already made their decision and asked what insights they have to offer the next generation.

Noga Blickstein            

Aged 27, intern in the Supreme Court with Justice Yitzhak Amit 
           

Why the public sector?

"“I’m not quite sure which I prefer, private or public,” admits Noga, who has completed her internship and must now decide on her next move. “In terms of the internship, I think the public sector is slightly preferable. In a short internship lasting just one year, I think interns in the public sector can be given greater responsibility that in the private sector.”

Tell us about your internship:             
                                   

"“A court internship is different from other public internships,” Noga begins. “The Supreme Court is also different from other courts, because the cases are more significant and interesting and touch on complex legal issues that need particular reflection and study.” The interns prepare opinions for the judges about incoming cases, summarize the facts, write abstracts and make recommendations. The interns also perform functions supporting the justices’ work, such as arranging the courtroom, preparing files for hearings, researching legal literature and case law, examining comparative law, and so forth. “We also calculate compensation in damages cases and check various aspects in order to facilitate the writing of the rulings,” Noga adds. “Even if the final rulings do not include all the research we have done, it’s still valuable. For example, Article 79A of the Courts Law empowers courts to give a compromise the authority of a court ruling. When the justices suggest a compromise they don’t just pluck a figure out of thin air. We work hard so that the justice knows what compromise to suggest. He uses our research even if he doesn’t write a ten-page ruling.”

What’s special about this internship?

"“I think I learned a lot about how court procedures work, how justices seek to make their decisions, and how the litigants sometimes need to know how to interpret hints from the justices. I think there’s a lot of truth in the saying “hard cases make bad law.” The justices try to make their rulings as accurate and precise as possible. Sometimes people imagine a kind of Utopian court where judges sit all day making Solomonic judgments. In reality trials are much more practical and mundane, and the litigants also come with this approach. The court tries to find solutions for their problem. I’ve learned a lot about legal proceedings in all fields of law and I’ve worked on a wide range of cases. You are exposed to a large number of cases and you get a ‘taste’ of all kinds of fields. It’s a good opportunity to see which fields you find most interesting.”

What’s your tip for the younger generation?             
                       

"“When you’re in an interview, you sometimes get the feeling that the place isn’t right for you, let alone whether you’re right for them. It’s important to try to work out what message the place conveys and what you want. Sometimes we can’t make our minds up and try to collect external information to help us decide where to do our internship. But I think the feeling you get during your interview can really help tip the scales.” For students hoping to do their internship in the Supreme Court, we asked Noga what qualities she thinks are required for the position. “You need to be very thorough and to be capable of analyzing cases carefully and precisely,” she replies. “That’s true of the legal profession in general, of course. It’s easy to dismiss something that sounds implausible, but you have to avoid the temptation and make sure that everyone enjoys their day in court. As an intern, you help the justice make these checks, and the more seriously you take your job, the more the litigants get out of the process.” Noga also mentioned hard work, intelligence, human relations, and social skills in a small office as important qualities for the position.

Omer Ben Matitiyahu 
           

Aged 28, intern in Amit, Pollak, Matalon & Co. – Tax Department
           

Why the private sector?   

"“I’m very attracted to commercial law and particularly to taxation, which relates to all types of commercial transactions,” Omer explains. He also gives some specific reasons for avoiding the public sector: “I don’t see the professional horizon in the public sector. The possibilities for promotion are much more problematic. In terms of the scope of work, too, it seems to me that if you work from nine to five during your internship year, you learn much less than if you’re at the office until eight in the evening.” Matitiyahu is not put off by the long hours demanded by the major law firms.

Tell us about your internship:             
                                   

"“Our department operates on a pool basis. I think that’s the best way of managing internships. Within a given field, you’re exposed to as many different people and opinions as possible and you have multiple sources for acquiring knowledge.” By way of example, Omer explains that he works with two partners, but when he wanted to diversify his experience he was added to a team from the commercial department working on a merger deal.

Many students are concerned that the major law firms will not provide proper training and will expect them to run before they can walk. Omer has a reassuring message: “My training process was nothing less than perfect. Whatever I’m working on, they explain how to do it and if necessary they correct me again and again. The learning process is vital in order to produce good attorneys. The firm is looking for interns to fill in a gap for a year: they want people who will grow together with the firm and become good attorneys, and in the future partners in the firm.” Omer was supposed to begin an internship in accountancy, but in the end he preferred to stay in the firm: “I realized that I enjoy the work here. The atmosphere is fun and family-like. The partners know my wife and I know their children.”

What’s special about this internship?

"“I’ve been here for a year and a half and I’ve dealt with things that none of the interns I know has been exposed to in other firms. One example is participating in high-level meetings in merger deals involving the some of the leading investment houses in Israel. Another is meeting with some very prominent names in the Israeli economy to plan their taxes. I negotiate with clients by myself, without an attorney being present, because they trust me. They’ve given me the tools and they know I can do the job.” Omer shared one of his experiences during his internship: “We worked on a deal to sell an Israeli start-up company to an American company. The deal was worth hundreds of millions of dollars and I was a full partner in the process from start to finish. When the deal was completed, the senior partner who managed the process sent an email to everyone in the office thanking all those who contributed to the process.” The senior partner made particular mention of four people who performed outstanding work, one of whom was Omer. “As an intern who’d only been in the firm for four months, it was far from obvious that I would be mentioned in this context. It’s very satisfying when people acknowledge your input and recognize its importance to the process. It makes you get up in the morning for work with a smile on your face,” Omer concludes.

What’s your tip for the younger generation?             
                       

“Rather than choosing a good law firm, you need to choose a good ‘school.’ The biggest mistake in choosing an internship is to look at the firm’s ranking and how many attorneys it employs. The first thing to do is to speak to interns in the firm and ask them how things work, how they feel, and how much they are involved in the process. If you choose to go to a high-ranking firm but you end the year with the feeling that you didn’t really learn too much, then the experience didn’t really do anything to build your future career.”

Aged 27, intern in Agmon & Co. (Jerusalem), Monopolies and Taxes Department

Why the private sector?

“Throughout my studies in the Faculty, I found commercial law the most appealing field,” says Or, who also experienced work in the Ministry of Justice as a student. “I spent a lot of time asking myself where I wanted to go. On the one hand the public sector embodies a lot of values, and that’s important. Even so, I decided that for my internship I had to try out the commercial market.” Or comments: “During your studies you see everything in black and white terms. But today I can see that private law firms aren’t all negative.” Private sector workers sometimes feel a need to do something different. In Agmon & Co. they’ve found a solution to this: the firm has launched a volunteering initiative. “Every worker is allocated 50 hours for volunteer work,” Or explains. “I am working at a center for blind people in a non-legal capacity.”                        

Tell us about your internship

Or participates in meetings with CEOs and company directors that we read about in the press. “We deal with very big cases, and the work is very much grassroots based. It’s not like a theoretical class about corporations. You get to see behind the scenes and it’s very interesting,” he relates. “I watch attorneys that I know are outstanding professionals and I learn from how they act. Sometimes I spend days on end attending meetings and simply listening. The firm believes that interns need to see everything, so I have a real opportunity to learn.”

What’s special about this internship?             
                       

“I decided to stay in Jerusalem, and at the time I made my decision it seemed to me there were two really top-rank firms in the city – Agmon and Yigal Arnon. Agmon has expanded significantly recently and it has a strong family character,” Or explains. “They look at your performance and your interpersonal relations and they’re not obsessed with how many hours you put in. The firm understands personal needs: for example, people who have children can leave the office early one day a week.” The firm is divided into teams that usually consist of one partner, two or three attorneys and an intern. “This method ensures that people get to know you and can see if you need help in a particular area.” Like Omer, Or has a positive message to convey regarding training in large firms: “You are treated as an individual and the relationship develops naturally. They take notice of you. I really liked it and felt I was part of the team. Tomorrow, for example, we’re all going on a staff outing together.” 

What’s your tip for the younger generation?             
                       

“People need to decide which field of law they finds most interesting, and then go to the top two or three firms in that field. The second most important factor are the personal relations and work hours in the firm. When I was a student I didn’t really think about reasonable work hours and I didn’t ask about it in the interviews. I just wanted to find a position in the best firm I could, and hope that they would also be decent guys. So what if I need to stay at the office for another hour in the evening – I’ll work like crazy and eventually it will be over. But it’s never over – the attorneys work just as hard as the interns. Firms that treat their interns well also treat their staff attorneys well, and the opposite is also true. Internship is your first step – it isn’t detached from the rest of your career. When you come to a firm you acquire credit there, so it’s worth making sure that you choose a firm that’s right for you in the long term.

Yosef Berman 
           

Aged 28, intern in the State Attorney’s Office 
           

Why the public sector? 
           

“When I applied for law school I already knew that I didn’t want to work in the private sector,” Yosef recalls. “I wasn’t interested in how much I was going to make.” Yosef wanted to use his law studies as a basis for bringing justice wherever it is needed. “I know it’s a clich?,” he admits, “but I think this clich? is really brought to life in the public sector and I haven’t been disappointed.” He feels that attorneys in the private sector can sometimes find themselves at the mercy of their clients’ whims. “Even if you don’t like something and it goes against your beliefs you have to keep the client happy. In our case, the client is the state. It doesn’t dictate a predetermined outcome, but empowers you to reach the true and proper outcome according to standards of law and justice,” he claims. “I was looking for somewhere where I could give something to the country, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised to see just how true that is."

Tell us about your internship           
                       

“Some people seem to think that public sector workers go home at four o’clock in the afternoon,” Yosef begins. “Sometimes I only get home at ten o’clock at night, and every day is chock full with discussions.” Yosef explains that the intern “has to prepare an opinion ahead of legal discussions, at the request of the state attorney or his assistants. An intern is always present in the discussions, except for confidential inner meetings.” The State Attorney’s Office deals with hundreds, if not thousands, of requests on a wide range of issues. “For example, we might receive a letter from a woman who has suffered injustice, and we have to reply and see whether there’s any room for us to intervene or to refer her to the right place.” When asked what he has learned from his internship, Yosef replies: “I’ve lost some of the cynicism I might have had before I came here. I’ve been surprised to see that the typical student declaration that ‘we’re going to make sure justice is done’ is really present at the discussion tables here. That’s very exhilarating. The internship here is also a rare opportunity to rub shoulders with the very top names in the Israeli legal world. You have a chance to acquire real analytical skills.” 

What’s special about this internship?             
                       

Yosef says that his internship has exposed him to subjects he could not have encountered elsewhere, such as highly sensitive discussions and “all kinds of things you read about in the headlines.” He explains: “You get a bird’s eye view of everything that’s going on in the legal field. Of course the work can sometimes be tiring or prosaic, but you always have a sense of mission and an awareness that you’ve been given a rare opportunity to peek into the world of truly great jurists that you used to know from the newspapers and now you sit alongside them. Suddenly you start to see how processes work from the inside. You understand things that you used to criticize when you only read about them on websites. You get to deal with issues of life and death and you have a sense of true privilege.” Yosef describes the atmosphere in the interns’ room and in the State Attorney’s Office in general as very pleasant. “The door’s always open and you receive hands-on training, even if it’s not always immediate. If you need something they don’t forget you,” Yosef claims. “If you want to schedule time with the state attorney, you are free to do so. Another advantage is that whoever you call on the phone jumps to help you. If you need to speak to another attorney or to someone in a government ministry, you get straight to the top brass.” 

What’s your tip for the younger generation?             
                       

“Students from the Hebrew University Law Faculty enjoy a certain prestige and don’t have to spend time learning the penal code by heart. Your transcript sheet proves your knowledge, but what really matters is to be willing to give your all. They’re looking for people who can see the big picture and who have a smile on their face. You have to show that you have good interpersonal relations and can conduct yourself like a decent human being.”

Write On! The Second Part of Our Series

In the previous issue we reviewed the journals in the Faculty in which students are involved * This time, we would like to introduce the non-student journals: the Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies and Shenaton ha-Mishpat ha-Ivri * Each of these journals enjoys a prominent and unique status in its field

Not Just Philosophy: The Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies

The Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies (JRLS) is a relatively young journal in the Faculty that is published in English. The chief editors are Professor Elon Harel and Professor David Enoch, who also serves as head of the Department of Philosophy. Professor Yoav Dotan, the previous dean of the Faculty, initiated the establishment of the JRLS approximately four years ago. Enoch recalls: “Yoav contacted Elon and me, and since then we have worked together on the journal. For the first few years the journal was a faculty project, and now it is published in cooperation with the Oxford University Press. Basically there was a partial takeover,” he jokes.

Thousands of legal journals are published around the world. The unique aspect of the JRLS is that it is devoted entirely to detailed critical discussions, usually of books or relatively large research projects. “Yoav very successfully identified this underrepresented niche,” Enoch notes. Legal journals certainly discuss written materials, but the comments are usually isolated and sporadic. “Our forum meets the need for in-depth discussion of books in the field of legal theory,” he adds.

In the student journals, the articles are submitted for review by the editorial board. The JRLS operates in a different manner. If an interesting book is published, the editors invite the author and other writers to engage in critical discussion of the work. According to Enoch, each issue usually includes two or three such symposiums. “An actual physical symposium is held – usually in Jerusalem, but not always – at which three of four referees comment on the book and the author responds to the criticism.” A discussion follows and written summaries are submitted for judgment by the editors before appearing as written symposiums.

Although Enoch emphasizes that “it’s alright” if the journal is shaped to an extent by the identity of its editors, the JRLS addresses numerous and diverse areas that relate to his own fields of expertise and those of Professor Harel. The JRLS does not focus specifically on the philosophy of law, but rather on theoretical legal writing. “When we have a basic grasp of the field, we use our knowledge. In other areas we ask our colleagues for assistance,” Enoch explains. The judgment process differs from that in journals such as the Hebrew University Law Review. “In the Review, they usually reach a one-word conclusion – yes or no,” Enoch notes. “For us, the general goal of the comments is to improve the article. It’s a more discourse-based process, and the symposium is published in that form.” Another difference is that the editors do not judge most of the articles themselves: their main function is to find suitable referees.

Open and full access to the JRLS is available online. “It almost certainly won’t stay that way for ever,” Enoch predicts. “The Oxford University Press begins with an open access format to raise interest in the journal, but later they try to apply a slightly more economically viable model.”

 
Theory and Practice: Shenaton ha-Mishpat ha-Ivri

Shenaton ha-Mishpat ha-Ivri was founded almost 40 years ago. Justice Menachem Elon and Justice Chaim Cohen were its founders and first editors. “In their day, the main purpose of the Jewish law project and the Annual was to inculcate Jewish law in Israel. The articles were written accordingly,” explains Dr. Benny Porat, one of the current editors of the Annual. “Today we are in a slightly different place. The goal is not so much inculcation, but rather a type of dialogue between Jewish law and modern law – something a little more theoretical and philosophical.” Porat adds that in most cases this requires comparison to other legal systems in addition to Israeli law. “Today we are more interested in discourse and mutual influence, and less concerned about whether Jewish law was actually implemented in practice,” he notes.

The Annual is a peer journal that applies a fairly strict screening process. “We accept about 30 percent of the articles we receive,” Porat comments. “We don’t compromise on quality, even though it limits the range of articles we can consider.” He explains that the Annual examines Jewish law in a broad context. In addition to articles focusing on Jewish law itself, the journal also explores fields of general law and Jewish studies (Talmud, Jewish history and Jewish philosophy) that touch on Jewish law.

By way of example, Porat shares with us an article that appeared recently in the Annual. “Dr. Itay Lipschitz published an interesting article in the previous issue entitled ‘Legal Discourse among Judges.’” The article examines the way in which court rulings are written: should the judge write the ruling entirely on his/her own, or should all the judges engage in discourse about the ruling? Porat explains: “Jewish law offers an unusual perspective in this regard, encouraging judges to exchange views and to write their rulings through a process of consultation. Jewish law provides much more detailed instructions on this matter than Israeli law.” The article offers Israeli judges an alternative model for writing rulings based on dialogue and group work.

Another example of the Annual’s broad approach is an article due to appear in the next issue. The article was written by Ben Schwartz, a Faculty graduate and an accountancy intern in the Economic Department of KPMG Somekh Chaikin. Entitled “A Proposed Insurance Solution for the Problem of Women Whose Husbands refuses to divorce” the article was initially written as part of a seminar examining solutions for this problem in religious and civil law. Schwartz was educated in religious Jewish schools and explains that the interface between religious law and the state has always been part of his inner world. “I developed this idea gradually as part of my desire to try to offer as creative solutions as possible to this problem,” Schwartz explains. The facilitator of the seminar, Dr. Avishalom Westreich, suggested that Schwartz expand his paper into a full academic article, since he felt that it offers a realistic and practical solution that has not yet been discussed. Schwartz continues: “Since the article touches on a problem that essentially relates to Jewish law, it was a natural step to submit it to Dr. Benny Porat for Shenaton ha-Mishpat ha-Ivri.” The problem of married woman who cannot secure a divorce is one of the most complex and ancient problems in the Jewish world. Since marriage and divorce in Israel are subject to religious law, the problem has become more acute in recent decades. Despite the gravity of the situation, none of the solutions (religious and civil) raised over the years has been accepted in full. “The complexity of this issue, and its potentially explosive impact on relations between religion and state, motivated me to come up with an improved solution that has a chance of being adopted,” Schwartz recalls. “My background in economics as a graduate in accounting and my interest in the field of insurance formed the background for a proposed solution based on modern insurance law,” he adds. The article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of various aspects of insurance arrangements that can be applied in the context of women whose husbands refuse to grant them a divorce. Insurance laws are particularly flexible, thereby providing a creative solution on the basis of the “core” arrangements discussed in the article, subject to budgetary and political limitations.

The editorial board is currently working on the 27th issue of the Annual, which is due to be published over the coming months. The board members are Professor Hanina Ben Menahem, Professor Gideon Libson and Dr. Benny Porat. Shenaton ha-Mishpat ha-Ivri is considered the leading journal in its field, both because of the prominent status of the Institute for Jewish Law and because of the standard of the journal itself. “In recent years, our colleagues in Tel Aviv have given us some serious competition with their journal called Dinei Israel,” Porat admits. “This only encourages us to improve our own product. I think we’re standing up to the competition.” The Annual is ranked in the B category by the Jerusalem Index, which is considered a high rating.

The Institute of Criminology: A Jewel within the Law Faculty

The Institute of Criminology was established as an integral part of the Faculty of Law * Every year, the Institute produces leading scholars in the field * We bring you a brief introduction to the Institute, the programs it offers, criminology in general and the dynamics between research and practice    

The Institute of Criminology was founded by Professor Israel Drapkin in the late 1950s, and is considered one of the longest-standing institutes in the world and the leader in its field in Israel. The faculty of the Institute includes outstanding criminologists, including recipients of the Israel Prize and the Stockholm Prize. The Institute currently offers MA and PhD programs, but is preparing to expand the curriculum and offer a BA program from the 2014-15 academic year. The Institute has some 200 students in three MA tracks: a research track with a thesis, a theoretical track without a thesis, and a practical track specializing in law enforcement. The Institute is also home to a group of MA and doctorate research students participating in its “Full Time” program.

The Full Time Student Program 

Intended for outstanding doctorate and MA students, this scholarship program provides students with a supportive environment while requiring them to devote most of their time and energy to research and other academic activities. In addition to working on their thesis or dissertation, these students work as teaching and/or research assistants. Their involvement in research projects led by faculty members often gives them the opportunity to make intellectual contributions that result in publications in peer-reviewed journals.

This program was created in response to one of the main challenges facing students for advanced degrees in Israel. “The average Israeli doctoral student completes his/her degree when s/he is already over the the age of 30. This is the average for Israelis who have served in the army. By contrast, a doctorate student abroad can graduate at the age of 25, creating unfair competition. Israeli doctoral students are thus preoccupied by the need to make a living and start a family.

Dr. Badi Hasisi, the head of the Institute

The net result is that it is far from easy to be a student for advanced degrees in Israel.” This explanation is offered by Dr. Badi Hasisi, the head of the Institute. The program creates a working environment that has produced a new generation of scholars who have later joined the Institute itself as faculty members or undertook post-doctorate studies abroad. Dr. Hasisi explains the rationale behind the initiative: “We make a considerable investment in this group, but this investment is definitely worthwhile. As we see it, one of the Institute’s tasks is to train brilliant and strong students who can later find a place in the Israeli academic community.” 

Tamar Bernblum, 34, is a student in the program and warmly recommends it: “I’ve met many doctoral students and I'm familiar with the different study tracks at the university. Doctorate studies can be a very lonely experience, and this program helps us build a peer group.” From a logistic perspective, the program provides office space, a computer and other equipment that meet the basic needs of the student. “We are treated as an integral part of the Institute,” Tamar emphasizes. “The program enables us to meet lecturers from around the world. In addition to providing a platform for learning, this also enables us to make connections and create personal opportunities,” she notes with satisfaction. Alongside the organizational platform provided by the Institute, the doctorate students cooperate among themselves in writing articles and help each other on a regular basis. “Naturally, friendships are formed. This is an experience that not all doctoral students at the university get to enjoy.”

Tamar Bernblum

In addition to a scholarship, participants in the program also have a chance to gain experience in teaching and research. “In this respect they address all our needs and help us build an academic career by means of the doctorate itself, as well as through teaching and research,” Tamar explains. “Every doctorate program in the university should try to meet this model, which I believe is very successful.”

Criminology as an Interdisciplinary Science 

Dr. Hasisi explains that criminology is an inherently interdisciplinary field. “The most important and groundbreaking studies in criminology are the ones that connect criminology with other fields.” In the law enforcement track, for example, a dialogue between the different areas involved in the field is vital. “A dialogue does not always take place between people from different institutions, for example between staff from the Israel Prison Service and police officers, despite the fact that these two agencies have important impact on each other’s work,” Dr. Hasisi argues. He notes that while not every academic field can be translated into policy, criminology has a strong affinity to both policy and theory. “Someone may undertake an interesting study on the impact of poverty on society, but it would not lead to significant change in society at large because it relates to sweeping changes that would be difficult to effect. The units of analysis are by their nature to broad and are on macro level,” he explains. Conversely, some studies in criminology address specific mechanisms on an “intermediate” level and can thus lead to real change, for example policies for enforcement, penalization and rehabilitation.

Research is the vanguard of the Institute, and motivating scholars to publish studies in top peer-reviewed journals is an extremely important factor. However, members of the Institute also maintain close associations with the law enforcement system and see their work as an opportunity to influence society. “We advance the field of research, publish studies and receive competitive research grants,” Dr. Hasisi explains. “We also believe that this education has a functional dimension, particularly for policy makers, such as senior police officers.” He claims that if a police officer hears an explanation of basic facts based on relevant research, this can influence the way the officer behaves in the field. Academics at the Institute recently received a substantial research grant for a study for the Israeli Prison Service, evaluating its existing rehabilitation programs and examining whether these programs lead to positive outcomes.

At the same time, the Institute also strives to develop the criminology community in Israel. “The biennial conference of the Israeli Society of Criminology, which was held last May, was run independently by the ISC for the first time. Professor David Weisburd, the former head of the Institute, serves as the president of the ISC, and the Hebrew University was the institution responsible for leading the conference.” Dr. Hasisi also notes the close and fruitful dialogue between the Institute and the global academic community. Criminologists from leading programs overseas visit the Institute, reinforcing its ties with the international community in the field.

All the World’s a Stage

Many people have noted the similarity between the theater stage and the courtroom * For eight years the Faculty has run a theater workshop that illustrates this connection in practical terms * The butterflies in the stomach of a prosecutor or defense attorney as they stand before the judge are very similar to those of an actor about to go out in front of the audience * The participants in the workshop gained two academic credit points – and enjoyed a once-in-a-lifetime experience

The Workshop 
Students who wish to participate in the theater workshop undergo preliminary screening by the workshop leaders, including Bentzi Faber and Shlomit Ben-Menachem. Over the academic year the workshop is led by an academic team and a professional theater team who work in cooperation with one another. On the academic side, the participants develop their critical examination of the legal system of which they themselves will later form part. At the end of a process that includes discussions, practical exercises, and reading rulings and other material, the students formulate their key conclusions from this experience. On the creative side, the participants prepare a production that aims to present their critique at eye level to legal and non-legal spectators alike.

In rehearsal

The work includes an introduction to the world of theater, different theatrical genres, improvisation classes, character work and other experiences. The goal is to connect the average law student with the thespian world. At the end of the process, and under the supervision of the team leaders, the participants write their own dramatic work based on their life experiences and present it to an audience including Faculty students and the general public.

This year’s play was staged on June 4, 2013 at Mazia House of Theater and was based on several scenes from The Crucible (by Arthur Miller). A group of eight actresses created an analogy between witches and criminals, including in terms of societal attitudes, as a basis for a discussion of crime. The group struggled to understand who is a criminal, how crime is created, and whether society is responsible. Shlomit Ben-Menachem, the assistant director, explains: “One of the goals of the workshop is to put yourself in the other’s shoes – a skill that is very important for those in the legal profession: to play the role and to stay in character. We all think that we would never become criminals, but what makes me say that and how can I be so confident? People who turned to crime also never imagined that they would do so,” Shlomit adds.

2013 Theater play

Breaking the Routine
Sapir Efron, 25, is a second-year student who chose to join the workshop in order to add some spice to her academic routine. “I found it difficult to concentrate on my studies all the time, and after the first year I wanted a break from the daily routine of frontal classes,” she explains. Sapir adds that she had not appeared on stage since her sixth-grade graduating party. Nevertheless, she decided to take the plunge and join the workshop. She does not regret her decision: “It’s been a real breath of fresh air for me. It energizes me and puts me in a good mood. There’s a great atmosphere in the workshop and I’ve made some wonderful friends I’m very fond of. I don’t think we would have been so open with each other in any other situation,” she suggests. As well as offering a break from routine, Sapir has also found the workshop useful on the academic front: “We touch in issues that we have studied in various courses in the Faculty. For example, I’m taking a course on manslaughter offenses, and in one class I just sat there and connected almost everything the lecturer was saying with our play.” Sapir summarizes her experience to date in the workshop: “I feel that the workshop has been an eye opener in many ways. It has enriched me and added real value to my week. At the moment we are writing texts and participating in long rehearsal sessions. It isn’t always easy, and sometimes it feels a bit much to combine this with all my other assignments, but it’s interesting and challenging. And the final outcome is something unique that comes from ourselves.”

Theater play 2012

Behind the Scenes 
Dr. Anat Horowitz, a Faculty member, has served as the academic instructor for the workshop for the past two years, working alongside Professor Hanina Ben-Menachem, who founded the program. The function of the academic instructor is to present the participants with legal themes, which they then attempt to express in theatrical terms in order to deepen their understanding of the issues. “The instructor does not impose one specific theme on the group, but usually presents the dialogue between theater and law in a general way, and then illustrates it by means of several themes. Through the discussion, each groups sees which themes it finds interesting and where it has something to say,” Horowitz explains. She adds: “I think this is an amazing project that allows for unique learning on many levels. Like any art, the theater has its own language, enabling the expression of ideas and thoughts about law in way that cannot be achieved through the conventional means and tools used in the Faculty.” She also mentions other benefits of the workshop, such as enhancing the students’ ability to appear before an audience, the use of body language, and the ability to enter into another character by playing a role in a play. All these skills are also important for future attorneys.

Competitions and Emissaries

Every year the Faculty sends students to represent the university and Israel in international competitions * Key events include the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition and the ICC Moot Court Competition * Some of the participants share their experiences in the competitions and explain how they prepared for the events

Jessup
The Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition is a prestigious competition in the field of international public law that has been held for over 50 years. Every year some 600 teams from law faculties in over 80 countries participate in the competition. Teams from the Faculty have represented Israel in Washington DC for the past seven years. Last year, the Faculty team reached the quarter final and ended among the eight leading teams in the world.

Yonatan Horowitz, a third-year student, participated in the recent contest and agreed to share his experiences with us. The entire process takes four or five months, during which time groups of about five students prepare their statement of claim and engage in real research. “In international law, many of the disputes relate to the question of what is law – is it establishes custom, international treaties, and so forth?” Yonatan explains. “Around September, they publish a case involving a dispute between two countries.” Yonatan notes that the competition organizers make sure that the subjects are relevant. This year, for example, the case related to three general issues: climate change, state debts, and migration issues. The writing assignments and the competition itself take place in English. After submitting their statements of claim, the participants begin to prepare for the national competition against the College of Management Academic Studies; the winning team then continues on to the international competition. “In the oral arguments stage, you stand up and present your arguments for 20 minutes in front of three judges who ask lots of questions and try to trip you up. Accordingly, it isn’t enough to just learn your own argument – you also have to know all the surrounding material,” Yonatan emphasizes. 

Yonatan Horowitz and the Judges

Yonatan notes that students who participate in the program must be capable of constructing a coherent argument. They also need good English and should be capable of engaging in serious legal research. The critical factor for success in the competition, Yonatan feels, is willingness to invest and make sacrifices. “It takes away some of your time with family and friends and it affects your investment in other courses,” he admits. “People who decide to participate must be willing to pay the price. On the other hand, I think it’s the most challenging thing you can be involved in. I learned things that I don’t think I would have learned anywhere else in the Faculty.”

Yonatan reveals that the work process is anything but simple. “Sometimes it can get frustrating when you are trying unsuccessfully to find something. Sometimes you just feel that you aren’t good enough and you’re letting your team down.” This is where the importance of teamwork comes into play. “The team supports you and carries you along. It’s very important that the members of the team get on, because this is a very intensive process. In our group we really liked each other and we got on well, both professional and socially.” In addition to the friendships they made, the competitors also gained in other ways from their experience: “We all saw an amazing improvement in our ability to speak in public. Although English is not my native language and it was harder for me than for others, once you’ve been doing something for six months you develop your capabilities,” Yonatan concludes.

The Moot Court Competition of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
The Moot Court Competition is held in The Hague, under the inspiration of the ICC. The participants are required to play the roles of victims, prosecution and defense before global experts in international criminal law, including judges from the ICC itself, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), and academics. In the 2012-13 academic year, the Hebrew University participated in the competition for the second time. Its team finished in fifth place, out of 26 teams that reached the international final stage.

Adam Shahaf, the assistant coach for the 2012-13 team, explains that “the competition began several years ago on the initiative of a lecturer from Pace University in New York who wanted to encourage students to study international law.” The competition has provoked considerable interest among academics from the field of international criminal law, who see it as an opportunity to exert influence from their standpoints. The participation of our Faculty in the competition was initiated by the Minerva Center, which also provides academic supervision and logistical services for the process. “In November,” Shahaf explains, “they publish a fictitious case extending over a good few pages and combining a wide range of issues. The document simulates the procedural stage in court.” After the case has been published, the team begins to prepare for the international competition itself, which takes place in The Hague in April. “We begin with three statements of claim – defense, prosecution and a third party. The third party is usually the victim, but sometimes it is a state arguing that the case should be heard before a domestic court rather than in the ICC.” During the first three days of the competition, a preliminary round is held in which the teams draw lots and compete in “mini-matches” with two other teams each time. At the end of this stage, the nine best teams go on to the final. After the final, the students tour the ICTY and other tribunals.

The rehearsal

Shahaf participated in the program last year, and this year served as assistant to team coach Dr. Rotem Giladi. In addition to the material addressed by the ICC, which is interesting in its own right, Shahaf explains that the competition offers a particularly interesting kind of learning. The practical goal of winning the competition adds a real edge to the process of writing the claims. “This is a wonderful experience that teaches you in the best possible way how to engage in legal research. I can still remember the main rulings in the area I researched, which key thinkers I needed to quote, and the main connections in my legal argument,” Shahaf reveals.

Sharon Aviram, 25, a first-year student, spoke as the team’s representative for the victims. Sharon was drawn to the competition because of her love of international law. As in the Jessop competition, Sharon is careful to emphasize the sacrifices expected of the participants. “The aspect of independent work requires a lot of self-discipline and cuts into your sleeping time. Sometimes it is really tough.” Sharon formulated the opening sentence she believes every student must ask themselves before joining the competition: “Ask yourself whether international law interests you – not whether it fascinates you, but whether it interests you, and whether you are willing to prioritize it over other areas.” She continues: “I appreciate the competition because I got something out of it. But for people who aren’t planning on working in this field in the future, it will come at the expense of other areas and it’s important to remember that.” Sharon describes the process as long, arduous and difficult, including many hours of work and research. With hindsight, however, “it was worth it.”

Sharon and Yulia

On the day the team left Israel there was a strike at the airport, so the experience was particularly stressful. “We arrived a day late because of the strike. Everything was crazy. But the Faculty really came through. We had almost given up hope and we were beginning to think that after all our work we wouldn’t be able to get to the competition. Then the Faculty agreed to pay for last-minute flight tickets and eventually we arrived in The Hague,” Sharon recalls with excitement. After the preliminary stage, one of the young organizers of the competition joined the table where the Israeli team was sitting. “He said, ‘Look guys, don’t take this too hard but you won’t be going on to the next stage. Don’t be offended – look on it as an experience. You’re a new team, and there are teams here that have been competing for eight years.’” This was half an hour before they were due to announce who was going on to the semi final, and we all put our heads down in despair,” Sharon admits. “We were stunned to see our name in the list of teams who qualified to the semi-final. At seven o’clock in the evening our team received the statement of claims of the other teams that had made it to the semi final, and we had to prepare ourselves by nine o’clock the next morning. It was really like a battle plan in the army,” Sharon recalls. The participants divided themselves into the different positions, and then coach Dr. Giladi came up with a creative way of strengthening the arguments of Eitan (the team’s counsel for the defense) over those of the competing groups. “Everyone was focusing on the suffering the victims had endured. Eitan didn’t dispute that, but he asked whether that was what was of interest to the court at this stage. He declared that the defendant was guilty, and let everyone begin to think that if this was the case, what was there left to say? Then he said, ‘But hold on a minute… We are in a preliminary hearing. It may be that all these events indeed happened – but does that empower the court to hear the case?’ With one sentence, Eitan knocked the wind out of the prosecutors’ sails and brought the court back to the question it was supposed to determine at this point: the issue of competence.” The team did not make it to the final the next day. However, Sharon decided to approach the judge from the semi-final stage and ask him what he thought about the team’s move. “He said that he really liked it, and that made us feel much better. It was so good that we were only two points short of reaching the final,” Sharon recalls with a smile.

Professor Yoav Dotan Discusses His Latest Book

Professor Yoav Dotan’s latest book, entitled Lawyering for the Rule of Law, will be published shortly by Cambridge University Press * We met Professor Dotan to chat about his book, which examines the transformation that occurred in the High Court of Justice Department (HCJD) of the State Attorney’s Office following Israel’s “constitutional revolution” * Does the department serve the government, the public or the court? * Professor Dotan summarizes the main conclusions from his study, and took the opportunity to reminisce about his student days   

“In the mid-1990s, I already realized that the High Court of Justice (HCJD) in the State Attorney’s Office is a kind of nerve center for decision making in many different senses.” This is the summary Professor Yoav Dotan offers for the study presented in his latest book, Lawyering for the Rule of Law, which is due to be published shortly by the prestigious Cambridge University Press. The book discusses the transformation undergone by the HCJD following the rise of judicial activism and the constitutional revolution in the Supreme Court, as well as the ways in which this change has shaped public litigation in Israel.

What is special about the HCJD?
“My interest in the department as the object of academic inquiry began some 20 years ago when I worked as an attorney in the department for a brief period after completing my doctorate. From the perspective of both the administrative authorities and the court, the department’s function extends well beyond the standard definition of representing the government or the authorities before the court. Many processes by which the High Court of Justice influences government policy are moderated or mediated by the HCJD.”

What aspects does your book focus on?
“I examine the work of the HCJD on several levels, including the constitutional and theoretical plane as well as a historical review of its development and a qualitative and empirical analysis. My study is based on a very large sample of cases from the 1970s and the 1990s. The 1980s, of course, saw considerable change in the way the High Court of Justice functions. This period, which can be referred to as the breakthrough of judicial activism, saw the removal of restrictions on legal and judicial standing, the development of the grounds of reasonableness, the expansion of judicial review, and other changes. I wanted to examine how these changes were reflected in the practices and outcomes of the court hearings on the basis of a comparison of the period before and after this era of change.

What did your study show?
“We can see a dramatic increase in the scope of litigation in the High Court of Justice between the 1970s and the 1990s. My hypothesis is that the department adapted itself both in practical and ideological terms to the new role the court defined for it in the 1980s. The department focused not only on providing optimum representation for the government but also on helping the court to expand its sphere of influence over the governmental bureaucracy.”

“Babysitting” Petitions

“In quantitative terms, the most dramatic and significant difference between the 1970s and the 1990s is the growth in petitions in which the state agrees to a settle. The jump in the rate of settlements is remarkable. We can also see changes in other aspects, such as the positions adopted by the state. In the 1990s, the initial position presented to the court by the State Attorney’s Office does not always call for the unequivocal rejection of the petition. In many cases, its position reflects a position that is independent from that of its client. This could be termed a more ‘statist’ position.”

How do you explain this difference in positions?
“I compare the outcomes of proceedings involving the HCJD with those of other authorities that are not represented by the department – mainly local authorities. In the latter case, we do not see the same process of change. I think my study shows in very clear quantitative and qualitative terms that the change that occurred in litigation was due to changes in the HCJD itself. Over the 1990s, we can see that a very wide gulf emerges, of about one to five, in the issuing of conditional decrees by the High Court of Justice against local authorities as opposed to the authorities that are represented by the HCJD. Anyone who is familiar with litigation before the High Court of Justice knows that a petition that does not secure even an conditionaldecree is one that has effectively been rejected out of hand, whereas a petition that secures such an order moves forward to a full hearing. This is a very critical point in the litigation. This shows that by comparison to petitions in which the HCJD presents its position, the court believes that the petition can be resolved without the need for a full hearing.”

This change could also lead to another de facto change, with the State Attorney’s Office moving to the front of the stage
“That’s right. One of the examples I analyze is the story of the rights of the Bedouins in the unrecognized villages in the Negev. Since the late 1990s, the High Court of Justice has virtually revolutionized government policy toward these villages. In the final analysis, this is a policy that has been directed by the HCJD.”

Can a reverse effect also be seen on the High Court of Justice?
“Today, the court itself refers to this phenomenon by means of the phrase coined by Justice Rubinstein – ‘babysitting petitions.’ The court functions as a ‘babysitter’ for the administrative authority, using a pending petition to make it adopt policy that tilts the situation in a direction that the court believes is necessary. This is far removed from our traditional perception of the court as an institution that provides immediate relief. Today, the court creates change in government policy through ongoing supervision. My argument is that the court could not do this without the cooperation of the HCJD.” [See also the interview in this issue with Supreme Court President (ret.) Dorit Beinisch, who also discusses the reasons why so many petitions are rejected or end without the need for a ruling].

Four Decades of Information

Professor Dotan has been involved in his field for many years and has collected an impressive database relating to some four decades of rulings by the High Court of Justice. Although he only began to write his latest book last year, it was preceded by a process of thorough research that is only partially reflected in the final product.

How do you set about executing such a huge task?
“I have always collected a huge quantity of data, and I continue to do so – particularly data based on the analysis of High Court of Justice cases. I examined the actual court files (and not only the electronic databases) – that’s a great deal of work. I also examined the pre-petition files (i.e. internal files of the HCJD in which the HCJD deals with petitions even before they are filed to the Court) and conducted many dozens, if not more, of in-depth interviews with attorneys from the HCJD, staff members from the State Attorney’s Office, judges, and attorneys who represented petitioners – all the players in the process. I should also take this opportunity to thank my many research assistants who spent long days in dusty archives. I won’t mention them by name, simply because there have been so many of them over the years. They were all students at our Faculty and they all performed excellent work in a thorough and responsible manner.”

What’s next?
“No promises, but I think one of my next projects will be a book about the High Court of Justice itself. I’m planning to write the book in Hebrew. If this idea goes ahead, I will be able to draw on the databases that I only used partially in the current project. But I’m not sure about it – time will tell!”

Supreme Court President Asher Grunis and Professor Yoav Dotan

Memories of Undergraduate Days

Our conversation shifts from future plans to the more distant past. Professor Dotan has a long and rich history at the Faculty of Law of the Hebrew University. He began as an undergraduate student “straight after the army – one day you’re a soldier in uniform, the next you find yourself at the Faculty,” he recalls. He came back to the Faculty for his doctorate degree, joined the Faculty and even served as dean from 2005 to 2009. During the interview we chatted about his experiences as a Faculty student and his thoughts about today’s students.

What was it like for you when you began to study in the Faculty?
“The story I usually tell new students who come to the Faculty is that the main thing I remember from my first week was being hungry all the time. I didn’t know where the cafeteria was in the building and I just walked around hungry.”

What about the studies themselves?
“Basically I remember this period as a fairly happy one. Above all I enjoyed the intellectual experience of studying with people I strongly admired and saw as intellectual giants. I found the studies eye-opening and enlightening and I really threw myself into them.”

Had you already decided at this stage that you would have an academic career?
“No, that wasn’t my plan. I think I only began to consider the academic track after I traveled to UC at Berkeley for my master’s degree. As an undergraduate student, I always assumed I would follow the usual professional track.”

What aspects of the studies themselves stick in your mind?
“Even as an undergraduate student I liked public law. My teacher for constitutional law was Shimon Shetrit, and my lecturers for administrative law was Claude Klein, assisted by Manny Mazuz, who I would meet again when I worked in the HCJD. In terms of public law I was also an autodidact – I read a lot and learned things by myself, beyond the materials we were assigned in class.”

How would you compare the atmosphere in the Faculty today compared with your time as a student?
“The atmosphere in the Faculty was a bit different from what I gather from today’s students. Today’s students often complain about excessive competitiveness, but I think that law schools are competitive almost by definition. There have been studies about this. But my experience as a student wasn’t so competitive. The atmosphere was less stressful. I don’t really understand why today’s students feel so stressed and I am trying to fight this tendency.”

How were your relations with your year class?
“Well first and foremost – I met my wife in the Faculty! I think at least 15 couples from my year class got married. Some of my best friends – people I see almost every week at social events – studied with me in the Faculty. These are friendships that have survived to this day, at least in some cases.”

Maybe that explains why the atmosphere was more relaxed
“Perhaps. There’s something irrational about the way people feel now. It isn’t as though we didn’t feel pressure from the job market. On the contrary, it was very hard to be admitted for law studies at the time, and there were only a few institutions in Israel that taught the subject – the Hebrew University, Tel Aviv and Bar Ilan. But once you’d got in, you more or less knew that you wouldn’t have a serious problem finding a position in the market.”

How about today?
“I don’t think the situation has changed, at least not for students from this Faculty. Today, too, it is not easy to be admitted. But once you’ve got in, you won’t have a problem finding an excellent position in the legal profession. That’s why I really don’t understand why we always hear this story of pressure from the students.”

What about the relationship between the students and the Faculty?
“I think that today the Faculty does quite a lot to look after its students and invests more energy, resources and attention in the average student – or in all the students, actually – than it did when I was an undergraduate. I felt I received one of the best possible legal educations here. When I went on to work as an intern, I appreciated the tools I had been given here and I was grateful to my teachers for giving me the best tools a lawyer could have. But as individual students, we didn’t feel the Faculty was particularly interested in us, beyond simply teaching us law.”

Can you think of something the Faculty offers today that didn’t exist back then?
“Sure: the placement project. We assume responsibility for placing our students in the job market, wrapped up in cotton wool. It could hardly be easier. That wasn’t the case in my day. This is a classic example, but it isn’t the only one. As a Faculty member, I must emphasize that our approach is not to see the students as a kind of nuisance. We want them to be happy and to enjoy coming the Faculty. After all, the Faculty invests a lot of time and money – certainly by comparison to my days as an undergraduate. The student experience back then was very different. Today we have a different style of doing things. We seek to give the students the feeling that they are part of the Faculty.”

Students

Who am I? Sarah Almo

Age: 23

Year: 1

The facts: Sarah immigrated to Israel from Ethiopia with her mother in 1991 and moved to Kiryat Malachi. “My mother died when I was seventeen and a half, but before she died she signed a form agreeing that I be drafted early to the army, since I had skipped a grade in school.” Sarah served as a manpower officer in the Central Command in Jerusalem, and at the same time worked with youth at risk in Kiryat Malachi. After completing a preparatory course at Tel Aviv University, she came to the Hebrew University to study law.

“I’m one of those people who know from a very early age what they want to do. I knew I was going to study and become an officer. I joined the army and didn’t claim the special conditions I could have demanded. I was a very challenging period; I learned a lot and enjoyed every minute of it,” Sarah says with a smile. Like many first-year students, Sarah is still finding her feet in the Faculty. “In my immediate surroundings I am very dominant, but here I feel a bit lost. If my girlfriends from school could see me now they say ‘What’s happened to you? Have you started taking Ritalin?!” she jokes. Sarah admits that because of her ethnicity she “stands out among the crowd,” and when she turns up for a class, people notice immediately. “The fact that I’m Ethiopian is something I’ve only really started to feel at university, simply because in Israel’s peripheral regions there are more Ethiopians. Apart from that, I don’t feel any difference. I was raised by my mother, who grew up in the city. That’s different from Ethiopians who were born in the country,” she explains.

Why law? Sarah took part in a project called Accessibility to Higher Education in the Negev – a three-year program in which school students can take courses at Ben Gurion University. “I took a course in law and I simply fell in love,” Sarah recalls. She describes her sense of outrage at seeing Chinese laborers sleeping in factories, and hearing stories from illiterate women who do not receive any explanation from their physician about the treatments they are supposed to take. “Over the years I’ve been exposed to more than a few injustices in Israeli society. I realized that people who do not know the laws or the way the bureaucracy works are abused in a cynical and shocking way,” she adds.

A second hearing: Jerusalem Day is also the memorial day for the Ethiopian Jews who died in Sudan as they tried to reach Israel. “In 1984, approximately 12,000 Ethiopian Jews began to walk from Ethiopia to Sudan. About 8,000 survived and reached Israel, but over 4,000 died on the way,” Sarah relates. Together with three other students, Sarah privately organized a memorial ceremony at the university. “It was very moving, and I hope it will become a tradition and that more students will take part.”

Who am I? Jessica Weintraub

Age: 24

Year: Master’s program

The facts: Jessica’s mother was born in Belgium and her father in Israel. Jessica came to Israel to study in the master’s program in the Faculty, and she is now specializing in intellectual property and law and technology. “I’m half Israeli, and when I’m in Israel I feel very Israeli. I’m living in Jerusalem, even though I really wanted to live in Tel Aviv,” she admits. In the final analysis Jessica is happy with her decision to move to Jerusalem: “It’s a very attractive city with lots going on. People here are very friendly.”

Why law? Jessica studied for her bachelor’s degree in Brussels, Belgium, and decided to continue her studies at the Faculty of Law in the Hebrew University. “This is a university that has a very good reputation and is ranked among the top 100 institutions in the world. Apart from that, Israel produces a very large number of patents, which is an area I’m interested in. So for me it was a good deal to study and live here,” she explains. Jessica has no trouble identifying the differences between the study methods in Brussels and Israel. “Things are more practical here. There are lots of assignments to submit and all the time you have to convince people of your own position. In Brussels you just show up to class and listen. Here you have to work every day.” Nevertheless, the hard work demanded in Israel has a good side. “Compared to Brussels, there aren’t so many examinations at the end of the year, and you aren’t flooded with information that you didn’t study over the year,” she notes. As for her Israeli fellow students: “People here are more mature and they find it easier to participate and present their arguments. Sometimes I feel that I have less experience and fewer ideas,” Jessica confesses. Since she came from the Continental legal system, she can also identify the differences in this respect. “In Brussels, when I need to study a court ruling it’s usually quite simple, and we examine it just in order to illustrate what we learned in class. Here it’s the most important aspect and you have to think more – the law doesn’t include everything, and court rulings always change some aspects.”

A second hearing: While she was studying in Brussels, Jessica used to come to Israel to volunteer on kibbutz during the vacations. “I went to kibbutz to chill out. It’s like Club Med – you don’t really know what’s going on the outside world,” Jessica comments. “Eventually I decided to move to Jerusalem, because I wanted to have a taste of real Israeli life.” The festivals were the time when she felt this most strongly: “It’s a really warm feeling. I never celebrated the festivals in Belgium, but here everyone does it, so you want to join in and you never feel alone. Even if you don’t have any family to celebrate with, people invite you over.” Jessica was in Israel during Operation Pillar of Defense. She recalls that when her friends from Belgium used to ask her about the security situation, she explained that compared to what they were seeing on television people weren’t that stressed. “The first time the sirens sounded I was nervous,” she admits, “but the second time I was calm just like everyone else. You get used to it.”

Who am I? Yaacov Gorovoy

Age: 25

Year: 2

The facts: Yaacov is originally from Ramle and now lives in the French Hill neighborhood of Jerusalem. Whatever he does, he likes to do it well. Although he had dreamed of studying law since he was a young boy, he came to the studies through a roundabout and competitive course.