Washington University Global Studies Law Review Volume 8 Issue 4 January 2009 Some Observations About Jewish Law in Israel's Supreme Court Steven F. Friedell Rutgers-Camden Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_globalstudies Part of the Religion Law Commons Recommended Citation Steven F. Friedell, Some Observations About Jewish Law in Israel's Supreme Court, 8 WASH. U. GLOBAL STUD. L. REV. 659 (2009), https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_globalstudies/vol8/iss4/4 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law School at Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in Washington University Global Studies Law Review by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. SOME OBSERVATIONS ABOUT JEWISH LAW IN ISRAEL’S SUPREME COURT STEVEN F. FRIEDELL ABSTRACT This Article considers whether the Israeli Supreme Court‟s effort to incorporate the parts of Jewish law that deal with secular subjects is internally flawed. The use of Jewish law differs from the use of the law of other jurisdictions. Typically courts rely on other jurisdictions‟ precedents to show that a rule is practical, that the court is not overstepping its authority, and that adoption of the rule will lead to interstate or international uniformity. The use of Jewish law does not satisfy these goals. There is concern that the religious elements of Jewish law are pervasive and that much of Jewish law is not well suited for a modern society. This Article considers the approach of looking to Jewish law, not for specific rules that will be applied, but as a storehouse from which one can seek enlightenment.