Obey the High Court

The High Court’s interim injunction freezing the dismissal of Ronen Bar, head of the Shin Bet, is balanced and moderate. But regardless of the ultimate outcome, the government, even with gnashed teeth and vocal criticism, must comply with the court’s rulings. Otherwise, we will find ourselves enmired in a constitutional crisis and governmental chaos. 

This self-tripping trap may begin with the High Court, but it will inevitably take hold across other governmental and civil systems and could rain anarchy down on the State of Israel. The way to effect change is through moderate reform measures with broad consensus. This is how to fix what needs fixing without destroying the country.

Anyone who spends a day in an Israeli courtroom dealing with civil matters will find in virtually all legal disputes one side wins and the other contends that the court was wrong. If you happen to visit any prison and talk to the inmates, you will hear the vast majority of them proclaim their innocence and declare their confinement a travesty of justice.

Perceptions that a court, any court, has erred are not uncommon and cross many legal contexts. And yet, I hope most Israeli citizens would agree that if every party who disagreed with a ruling chose to flout it, we would drown in impossible chaos. 

Obedience to the courts, from small claims all the way up to the Supreme Court, is a cornerstone of the effective and fair enforcement of the law. It allows citizens to enter into contracts and enables society to function with a semblance of order.

Contentious struggles between the High Court and the Israeli government are nothing new. But in the last two years, since the machinations of “legal reform” burst into our lives, and even more so in recent weeks, the struggle has taken on the character of all-out war. The disruptive scenes we witnessed during Tuesday’s hearing on the dismissal of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar had never been seen here before. 

Highly charged legal debates are not uncommon in such public cases, but the boorish, inappropriate, and unacceptable behavior of MK Gottlieb was a new low. 

Those calling on the prime minister and his government to disobey the High Court order, including senior ministers, believe they are drawing a “red line” against a lack of judicial restraint and interference in government affairs. But the result of such disobedience, should it come to pass, would be disastrous for Israeli society and the ability of government systems to continue functioning at the most basic level. Anyone who thinks such defiance will be limited to rare decisions and extreme cases is deluding himself and endangering us all.

The moment the government first disobeys the court, a bottomless abyss will open, threatening to swallow us all. Today it’s the ousting of the head of the Shin Bet, but tomorrow it could be any other High Court decision the government finds. Who will determine the standard for which decisions are obeyed, and which are not? The Likud leadership? The pundits on Channel 14? The most extremist government ministers? Right-wing pontificators on Twitter? All of them together?

In short order, the decisions and rulings of the High Court of Justice may become mere recommendations. Those who seek to fight the High Court do so in the name of the current government. But what about the next government? 

And if the government, which is supposed to be the prime exemplar of obedience to the law as it is interpreted by the court, renounces its duty to comply with court rulings, why would ordinary citizens take the obligation to the rule of law seriously?

“If it were not for the fear of the government,” our elders taught, “one would swallow his neighbor alive” (Pirkei Avot 3:2). 

Disregarding the High Court’s order, even if it seems justified to some, truly crosses a red line, the consequences of which will be severe. The head of the Shin Bet may not continue in his position, but the price Israeli society pays will be astronomically high. It would undermine the already fragile foundation on which the divided and conflicted Israeli society stands and may let loose a deluge of anarchy. 

The legal system is imperfect. But the path to change requires consensus-based rules of the road, for example through a “thin constitution.” One that strikes new balances within and between our governing structures, and in so doing heals our society.