The Israel Law and Liberty Forum is a movement of lawyers, judges, students, and other individuals who are interested in Israeli law and policy. Our work — encompassing debate events, publications, and unique educational opportunities for jurists — advances a conservative legal worldview based on four core principles: the separation of powers, judicial restraint, individual liberty, and limited government.
The Forum is a non-partisan organization which aims to serve as a platform for debate and scholarship. We do not take specific policy positions.
Outstanding opportunities for legal learning, discussion, and leadership
Led by outstanding Israeli law students, campus chapters host debates between leading legal figures representing diverse perspectives on significant questions of law. In addition, chapters host member-only meetings with VIP’s from across the world of Israeli law, Israel’s only annual law student conference, and an annual writing contest. Forum chapters exist at four out of five of Israel’s top law faculties: Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University, Bar Ilan, and Reichman University. Our chapters also co-sponsor Israel’s only national law school writing contest, encouraging serious and creative discussions of broad legal themes across all Israeli law faculties.
Israel is still in a period of significant formation that will determine its security and prosperity for years to come. The legal aspects of great debates on governance, security, economics, and culture all deserve a rich and varied conversation. Our Hebrew-language digital publications offer a unique platform from conservative and classical liberal perspectives. These include “The Public Domain,” and online journal with in-depth long form essays on contemporary issues in Israeli law from contributors including Supreme Court justices, professors, and prominent attorneys. We also publish a popular podcast with in-depth legal interviews, and an ever-expanding Classics Library featuring translations of great legal texts to Hebrew as well as touchstone Hebrew-language scholarship.
In 2022, we were privileged to partner with Shibolet Press to publish “In the Name of the Law,” the first-ever Hebrew-language translation of select writings by Justice Antonin Scalia.
The Skolnick Summer Seminar in Law & Democracy is an annual summer seminar for 20 of Israel’s top law students. The seminar intensively cultivates the study and discussion of conservative legal thought, involving the contributions of some of the top Israeli and international legal thinkers in the world. Former speakers range from Justice Alex Steyn to Professor Menachem Mautner, Professor Ruth Gavison (z”l) to former Chief Justice Aharon Barak, as well as former Minister of Justice, Ayelet Shaked and former deputy Attorney General, Dina Zilber.
What is the proper role of theState Attorney’s Office? Has there been a shift in the application of criminallaw to public figures? Should the Supreme Court be able to invalidate Israel’sconstitutional legislation? How should the military and legal systems interacton key questions of national security? These issues and more deserve thoughtfulanalysis by top legal experts in Israel and abroad. Our national organization hosts public events, including debates, interviews, andconversations with prominent legal figures drawn from academia, government, themedia, and the private sector.
Richard Epstein is the Tisch Professor of Law at New York University and a senior lecturer at the University of Chicago. He is the founder and head of the Classical Liberal Institute at NYU, and the Bedford Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institute at Stanford University. Professor Epstein is an expert in law and economics. He is considered one of the world’s most influential and prolific contemporary legal scholars.
Prof. Ron Shapira is an attorney and professor of law. He currently serves as Israel’s judge at the International Court of Justice in The Hague and as the Rector of the Peres Academic Center. Previously, he served as President of the Peres Academic Center, Dean of the Faculty of Law at Bar-Ilan University, and a senior lecturer at Tel Aviv University.
Formerly Deputy Director-General of the Tikvah Fund Israel, Aylana Maisel-Diament obtained her JD at Georgetown University Law Center and has a BA in Jewish Studies from the Macaulay Honors College. Her work has been published in outlets including Mosaic, Commentary Magazine, and The Jerusalem Post. She is a co-founder of the Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty.
Oren Rubin is a licensed attorney in Israel. He graduated with honors from Reichman University with a double LL.B. and B.A. degree in law and government. He previously interned at the law firm of S. Horowitz & Co.
Dr. Sharf is a faculty member and lecturer at the Peres Academic Center School of Law. He obtained his PhD in Law at Bar-Ilan University under Prof. Gidon Sapir.
Adv. Shimon Nataf is a Senior Fellow at the Israeli Forum for Law and Liberty and at the Kohelet Policy Forum. He is a doctoral candidate at Columbia University in New York and previously served as a law clerk at the Supreme Court of Israel and as a senior advisor to the Chair of the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee. He is the author of Statutory Interpretation in Israel.
Shira Hazony-Feder graduated with an MBA from Ben Gurion University and a degree in social work with honors from The Hebrew University. She has years of experience in managing staff projects, and a group facilitator certificate from The Magid Institute of The Hebrew University.
