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Modern Applications of Jewish Law;
Resolution of Contemporary Problems According to Jewish Sources in Israeli Courts

This book, edited by Prof. Nahum Rakover, is a translation of the Hebrew book "HaMishpat HaIvri b'Psikat Batei HaMishpat b'Yisrael" (Jewish Law in the Israeli Courts).

It is a compilation of hundreds of judicial decisions from Israeli courts, including the Supreme Court, citing or based upon precedents in Jewish law. As such, it offers concrete illustrations of the manner in which the 1980 Foundation of Law Act has been implemented in judicial practice. This Act requires judges to apply the principles of freedom, justice, equity and peace of the Jewish heritage.

The President of Israel, Chaim Herzog, in his foreword to the book, stated:

Law lies at the very foundation of the Jewish People. Law was the medium by which the tribes of Israel took their first faltering steps towards nationhood. Law reigns supreme in the Jewish Tradition. A just system of law is absolutely necessary to the existence of the Jewish People.

My father, Israel's first chief rabbi, R. Isaac haLevi Herzog's aspiration to base the law of Israel upon Jewish law was rooted in his awareness of that system's ability to find legal solutions for the problems of every era. Jewish law has never stagnated, never stopped evolving. The beauty and uniqueness of Jewish law lies not in its immutability, but rather in its dynamism, its ability to develop and adapt to change. Though based on the written Torah received by the people of Israel thousands of years ago, Jewish law has in every generation proven itself both qualified and capable of confronting every challenge and every problem requiring legal solution.

Over the past forty-four years of Israel's existence, her legislature and judiciary have relied heavily upon Jewish law. Judges, interpreting statutes and applying the law, have frequently adopted the principles and conceptions of Jewish law in both theory and practice.

The scope of this work is extremely broad, containing decisions from every imaginable area of human endeavor. Covered here are not only such classic legal topics as civil and criminal law, but also discussions of such fundamentals of law as the force of custom and the force of precedent; evasion and legal fiction; and morality and law. As regards to social regulation and administration, we find discussions of immunity, and of appointment and suspension of public officials; the requirement that administrative decisions be free of personal interest and not arbitrary; confidentiality; the right of citizens to protection of human dignity and protection against defamation; and the community's obligation to educate its members. As regards to issues of a penal nature, there are decisions concerning extradition and rehabilitation. In the field of labor law, there are discussions of employer/employee relations and the right of employees to severance pay.

The broad range of topics discussed is in itself the best indication of the ability of Jewish law to confront the entire range of legal problems, be they classic or modern.

Modern Applications of Jewish Law can thus serve not only legal scholars, but also any person interested in studying the application of Jewish law in theory and practice, its solutions to actual problems, the Israeli judiciary's recourse to Jewish sources, and most importantly, that which is unique to Jewish law - its depth, wisdom, and justice, as well as its application to the reality of modern life.

The book was published in 1989 and contains 1054 pp.

Contents

Introduction
Part One JEWISH LAW IN THE STATE OF ISRAEL
Part Two GENERAL PRINCIPLES
Part Three SOCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION
Part Four REGULATION OF THE COURTS
Part Five EVIDENCE
Part Six PENAL LAW
Part Seven TORTS
Part Eight OBLIGATIONS
Part Nine PROPERTY - PHYSICAL AND INTELLECTUAL
Part Ten COMMERCIAL LAW
Part Eleven LABOUR LAW
Part Twelve INTERPRETATION