Judicial Independence: Cornerstone of Democracy

Shimon Shetreet, is the Greenblatt Chair of Public and International Law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel (emeritus). He is a Member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Arts and sciences of Belgium and the author and editor of many books on the judiciary. He is the President of the International Association of Judicial Independence and World Peace and the leader of the International Project of Judicial Independence and the Mt Scopus International Standards of Judicial Independence 2008. Between 1988 and 1996 he served as a Member of the Israeli Parliament, and was a cabinet minister under Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres. He also served as Senior Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem. He was a Judge of the Standard Contract Court and served as a member of the Chief Justice Landau Commission on the Israeli Court System. Received the International Jurist Association Award 2011 New Delhi. Hiram E. Chodosh, holds a BA degree from Wesleyan University and a JD degree from Yale University. He is President and Professor of Claremont McKena College, he served as Professor and Director of the Frederick K. Cox International Law Center at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Dean of the S. J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah, and Hugh B. Brown Endowed Presidential Professor of Law and Senior Presidential Adviser on Global Strategy. President Chodosh served as Fulbright Senior Scholar in India and received the Gandhi Peace award.

Preface


Acknowledgements


Notes on Contributors


Table of Cases


Table of Legislation


1 General Introduction

  Shimon Shetreet



Part 1

Democracy, Rule of Law and Judicial Independence in Challenging Times

2 The Judiciary in Malta in Historical and Comparative Prespective

  Vincent A. De Gaetano



3 Analysis of the Major Contemporary Threats and Challenges to the Independence of Justice

  Diego Garcia–Sayan



4 Judicial Independence in the Face of Political Impunity

  Tassaduq Hussain Jillani



5 Judicial Independence and Political Impunity A Brief Rejoinder from India

  Arghya Sengupta



6 The Contribution of the Jurisprudence of the Supreme Court to the Protection of Social Rights

  Justice Yosef Elron



7 Theory of Separation of Powers and Its Development in England

  Shimon Shetreet



Part 2

Measuring and Evaluation of the Justice System

8 Measuring Justice and Judicial Independence The Impracticable Imperative

  Hiram E. Chodosh and Eric Helland



9 Artificial Intelligence and the Judiciary

  Lord John Thomas



10 Evaluation and Measurement of Courts

  Yigal Mersel



11 Scientific Evidence in Courts of Law An Overview

  Jay Levinson, Eti Buchnik, Barak Ariel and Abraham J. Domb



Part 3

Contemporary Challenges of Judicial Independence

12 Contemporary Challenges to Israeli Judiciary Proposed Judicial Reform

  Shimon Shetreet



13 Public Opinion and Public Trust in the Israeli Judiciary

  Nir Atmor and Menachem Hofnung



14 The Struggle for the Independence of the Judiciary in the Palestinian Authority

  Haim Sandberg



15 The Legitimacy of Judge’s Consultation with Colleagues and External Experts

  David Cheshin



16 Challenging the Traditional System of Appointment of Judges to the Federal Supreme Court in Switzerland

  Gian Andrea Danuser



Part 4

eli – Mount Scopus Project on Standards of Judicial Independence

17 The Significance of Developing International and European Standards of Judicial Independence The eli Mt Scopus Project

  Shimon Shetreet



18 European Standards of Judicial Independence – Lessons from the Court of Justice of the European Union

  Sophie Turenne



19 Judicial Self-governing Bodies Instruments of Independence or Path to Ossification?

  Giuseppe Franco Ferrari



20 Challenges to Judicial Structural Independence in Slovenia

  Marko Novak



21 The Challenge of Balancing Between Universality and Particularity in Shaping International Standards of Judicial Independence

  Shimon Shetreet



Part 5

Contemporary Issues on the Role of the Judiciary Constitutional Position of the Judiciary

22 The Struggle for Judicial Independence The Supreme Court as a Constitutional Beacon in El Salvador

  Mónica Castillejos-Aragón



23 Jointly and Severally The Relationship between the President of the Supreme Court and the Minister of Justice of Israel

  Shimon Shetreet



24 Court Packing and Judicial Independence An American Perspective

  Jonathan L. Entin



25 The Dysfunctions of the Courts and Judicial Role

  Maimon Schwarzschild



26 The Role of the Judge in Jewish Law

  Shimon Shetreet



Part 6

Honouring 40 Years of Pursuit of Judicial Independence of jiwp

27 The Work on Promoting Judicial Independence of the International Association on Judicial Independence and Its President Prof. Shimon Shetreet

  Daphna Lewinsohn Zamir



28 Contribution of Shimon Shetreet to Public and Constitutional Law

  Yoav Dotan



29 Our Pursuit of Judicial Independence Tribute to Shimon Shetreet on the 40th/75th Dual Anniversary

  Hiram Chodosh



30 Defending the Independence of Judges and Lawyers in Challenging Times

  Diego Garcia–Sayan



31 Promoting Judicial Independence at the National and International Level

  Eliezer Rivlin



32 The Role of the Bar in Defending the Rule of Law in Israel

  Avi Himi and Israeli Bar



33 A Note on Judicial Review of Government Decisions An Ancient Jewish Perspective

  Asher Axelrod



34 Personal Reflections on Judicial Independence Historical Lessons and Contemporary Challenges

  Shimon Shetreet



Part 7

Appendices

Appendix 1 Mount Scopus International Standards of Judicial Independence


Appendix 2 Bologna Milano Global Code of Judicial Ethics 2015


Appendix 3 The New Delhi Code of Minimum Standards of Judicial Independence (Adopted by the iba New Delhi Convention 1982)


Appendix 4 Montreal Universal Declaration on the Independence of Justice


Appendix 5 UN Basic Principles on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers


Appendix 6 United Kingdom Supreme Court Guide to Judicial Conduct (2019)


Appendix 7 Code of Conduct for the Justices of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany




Index