Moshe Landau
Moshe Landau | |
|---|---|
| Supreme Court of Israel judge | |
| In office 1953–1982 | |
| President of the Supreme Court of Israel | |
| In office 1980–1982 | |
| Preceded by | Yoel Zussman |
| Succeeded by | Yitzhak Kahan |
Moshe Landau (Hebrew: משה לנדוי, born 29 April 1912) is an Israeli jurist. He was the fifth President of the Supreme Court of Israel.
Biography
Landau was born in Gdańsk in 1912. In 1930 he finished high school in the Free City of Danzig and in 1933 he graduated cum laude from the University of London school of law. That year, he immigrated to the British Mandate of Palestine. In 1937 he was admitted to the Bar of Palestine. In 1940 he was made judge in the Magistrate's Court of Haifa and was appointed to the District Court in 1948.[1]
In 1953 he was appointed a Supreme Court judge. In 1976 he became Deputy President of the Supreme Court and was President from 1980 to 1982. In 1961 he presided over the Eichmann Trial. In 1962 he set a precedent regarding the freedom of information by overruling a censor decision. As Chairman of the Israeli Central Elections Committee in 1965, he was the first to disqualify a "subversive" list from running for the Knesset.[1]
He was Chairman of the World Zionist Congress tribunal and Chairman of the advisory commissions on reforming the Israeli Land Law, criminal procedure and administrative tribunals. He was Chairman of the commission for recognition of righteous among the nations in Yad Vashem. From 1956 to 1962 and from 1965 to 1966 he served as Chairman of the board of directors of the Technion. In 1974 he was a member of the Agranat Commission. He was a member of the International Court of Justice.[1]
In 1987 he headed the commission to investigate the Shin Bet's procedures. The commission found frequent cases of perjury in court and violations of the law. The commission acknowledged that "moderate physical pressure" might sometimes be necessary as an interrogation tool.[2] Israeli human rights groups maintained that the practices authorized by the commission amounted to torture.[3] The commission's report was nullified in 1999 by a Supreme Court ruling.[2]
Awards and honours
- In 1980, Landau received an honorary doctorate from the Technion.
- In 1991, he was awarded the Israel Prize for law.[4]
- In 1993, he was made an honorary chairman of the Technion's board of directors.
- In 1997, he received an honorary doctorate from the Hebrew Union College.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d "Landoy Moshe". nfc. 2000-10-29. Retrieved 2008-10-18. Template:He icon
- ^ a b Lelyveld, Joseph (2005-06-12). "Interrogating Ourselves". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ^ "Israel admits torture". BBC. 2000-02-09. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ^ "Israel Prize Official Site - Recipients in 1991 (in Hebrew)".
