The High Court of Justice on Thursday froze the new Broadcasting Law, 2026, until further notice.
The decision, handed down by Chief Justice Yitzhak Amit and Justices Alex Stein and Yechiel Kasher, came in response to a series of petitions against the law and the process by which it was enacted. It followed a hearing held on July 13.
The justices issued a show-cause order requiring the respondents, including the government and the Knesset, to explain why the law should not be struck down over the alleged flaws in its legislative process.
Government did not respond
The justices noted that the government chose not to file a response to the requests for an interim injunction, despite being given time to do so.
“Accordingly, at this stage and until a further decision is made, an interim order is hereby granted suspending the entry into force of the Broadcasting Law,” the ruling states.
The law has therefore been suspended, but not struck down.
Nine-justice panel to hear the case
The court also decided to transfer the case to an expanded panel of nine justices, to be named by the chief justice in a separate decision.
The first stage of the hearing will focus only on how the law was passed, not on its content. “We did not find it appropriate to issue a show-cause order regarding the provisions of the Broadcasting Law on their merits,” the justices wrote, adding that the parties’ arguments on those provisions remain fully preserved.
In other words, the court has not yet ruled on whether the substance of the law is lawful, and will first examine whether it was properly enacted.
State must respond by January
The respondents must file affidavits in response by January 7, 2027.
The court also merged a petition filed by MKs Shelly Tal Meron and Yorai Lahav-Hertzanu with the other petitions, and ordered the two to submit an amended petition by November 8. Three additional petitions were put on hold until the court rules on the legislative-process question.
Petitioners against the law include the Union of Journalists in Israel, the Press and Broadcasting Council, the Movement for Quality Government and the News Company.
