Israel's Rabbinate Announces Policy Changes, Seeks to Drop Lawsuit
The State of Israel informed the High Court of Justice on Tuesday that significant policy changes and administrative reforms within the Chief Rabbinate address the concerns raised in a lawsuit filed by the Lavi organization. Consequently, the state requested the court to dismiss the petition and cancel the upcoming hearing.
The lawsuit, filed by attorney Yonatan Yakubovich, focused on the conduct of the former CEO of the Chief Rabbinate, Yehuda Cohen, and alleged issues with the operation of kashrut (kosher certification) systems, enforcement, and personnel management.
In its update to the court, the state explained that following Cohen's departure and the appointment of Yehuda Avidan as acting CEO, substantial changes have been implemented. These include restarting tenders for senior kashrut positions, such as directors for domestic and international kashrut and shechita (ritual slaughter). A new tender process for a shechita role is also underway after the previous candidate was disqualified.
Regarding enforcement, the Rabbinate is expanding its engagement with an external prosecutor by NIS 50,000 to address challenges in prosecuting kashrut fraud cases. Plans are also in motion to establish a formal tender for an external criminal prosecutor and secure a dedicated budget. Additionally, the acting CEO intends to resume proactive inspections of local religious councils' kashrut oversight, in coordination with the Chief Rabbi. Enforcement officials have also been granted authorization to operate outside standard hours, including nights and weekends, to combat kashrut fraud.
The state concluded that since Cohen is no longer in his position, some of the lawsuit's claims are moot, while others have been substantially addressed by the recent developments.
