Moshe Landau

{{Short description|Israeli judge}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Moshe Landau | honorific_suffix = | image = Moshe Landau (997009326691005171) (cropped).jpg | image_size = 220 | caption = | office = Supreme Court of Israel judge | term_start = 1953 | term_end = 1982 | office2 = President of the Supreme Court of Israel | term_start2 = 1980 | term_end2 = 1982 | nominator = | appointer = | predecessor2 = Yoel Zussman | successor2 = Yitzhak Kahan | birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1912|4|29}} | birth_place = Danzig, Kingdom of Prussia, Germany (present-day Gdańsk, Poland) | death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|2011|5|1|1912|4|29}} | death_place = Jerusalem, Israel | native_name = משה לנדוי | alma_mater = University of London }}

'''Moshe Landau''' ({{langx|he|משה לנדוי}}; 29 April 1912 – 1 May 2011)<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4063015,00.html|title=Eichmann Trial judge passes away|newspaper=Ynetnews |date=May 2011|last1=Altman |first1=Yair }}</ref> was an Israeli judge. He served on the Supreme Court of Israel from 1953 until his retirement in 1982. Landau was the fifth President of the Supreme Court, from 1980 to 1982.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lawofisrael.com/israeli-supreme-court-decisions/ |title=Israeli Supreme Court decisions search - Israeli Lawyers | Israeli Law Firm Golan & Co |access-date=2014-05-15 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140505060543/http://www.lawofisrael.com/israeli-supreme-court-decisions/ |archive-date=2014-05-05 }} supreme court decisions database</ref>

Described as one of Israel's greatest judges and as one of the founders of Israeli law,<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":1" /> Landau was credited with presiding over the Eichmann Trial, a landmark case related to the prosecution of Adolf Eichmann, a key figure in The Holocaust, in an "objective and stately manner".<ref name=":1" /> He played a crucial role in limiting government censorship and safeguarding civil rights through his legal decisions.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last1=Sanders |first1=Edmund |last2=Times |first2=Los Angeles |date=2011-05-03 |title=Moshe Landau dies at 99; Israeli jurist presided over Adolf Eichmann trial |url=https://www.latimes.com/world/middleeast/la-me-moshe-landau-20110503-story.html |access-date=2024-02-02 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

Landau's rulings sometimes obscured his personal political stance, yet he consistently opposed judicial activism, emphasizing the importance of judges avoiding political agendas to maintain public trust in the judicial system; those positions of his own are used until today as arguments in support of reform in the judiciary of Israel.<ref name=":2" /> Historians have praised his independence and openness to new ideas, highlighting his uncommon willingness to evolve and adapt his perspectives.<ref name=":2" />

==Early life and education== Landau was born in Danzig, Germany (modern Gdańsk, Poland) to Isaac Landau and Betty née Eisenstädt.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jn_GG55gKm8C&pg=PA954 |title=The international Who's Who 2004|first1=Elizabeth|last1=Sleeman|publisher=Europa publications|year=2003|page=954|isbn=9781857432176}}</ref> His father was a leading member of the Jewish Community of Danzig.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vvIECPYRssIC&pg=PA32 |title=Danzig 1939, treasures of a destroyed community|first1=Günther |last1=Grass|first2=Vivian B.|last2=Mann|first3=Joseph |last3=Gutmann|publisher=The Jewish Museum, New York|year=1980|page=32|isbn=9780814316627}}</ref> 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.<ref name="nfc" />

==Judicial career==  Having been admitted to the Palestine Bar in 1937, Landau attained the position of a judge in the Haifa Magistrate’s Court in 1940. He subsequently progressed to the District Court in 1948 before being appointed to the Supreme Court in 1953.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="nfc">{{Cite news |date=2000-10-29 |title=Landoy Moshe |url=http://www.news1.co.il/Archive/006-D-108-00.html?tag=17-53-17 |access-date=2008-10-18 |work=nfc |language=he}}</ref>

In 1957, Landau contributed significantly to the court-martial of the Criminal Court of Appeals, addressing the issue of lawful orders in a case involving the killing of 48 Arabs in Kafr Qasim.

In 1961, Landau presided over the landmark Eichmann trial.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fox |first=Margalit |date=2011-05-03 |title=Moshe Landau Dies at 99; Oversaw Eichmann Trial |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/world/middleeast/03landau.html |access-date=2024-02-02 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> According to Israeli historian Tom Segev, Landau was dedicated to preserving order and fairness during the trial, even if it led to conflicts with those who aimed to use the trial for Holocaust education and Israeli nationalism. Landau, in an effort to maintain a genuine trial atmosphere, restricted testimony and evidence unrelated to Eichmann's role, minimizing dramatic elements and emphasizing the trial's prestige and respectability.<ref name=":2" />

In 1962, he set a precedent by overruling a censor decision, impacting the freedom of information landscape.

His involvement in politics included chairing the Israeli Central Elections Committee in 1965, where he notably disqualified a "subversive" list from running for the Knesset.<ref name="nfc" /> In 1974, he became a member of the Agranat Commission, tasked with investigating intelligence and security failures leading to the Yom Kippur War.

Progressing in his judicial career, Landau became Deputy President of the Supreme Court in 1976 and ascended to the position of President of the Supreme Court from 1980 to 1982.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Cashman |first=Greer Fay |date=2011-05-01 |title=Moshe Landau, judge at Eichmann trial, dies at 99 |url=https://www.jpost.com/national-news/moshe-landau-judge-at-eichmann-trial-dies-at-99 |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=The Jerusalem Post |language=en-US}}</ref> In 1987, he headed the Landau Commission, investigating Shin Bet's procedures. The commission found instances of perjury and legal violations, acknowledging the use of "moderate physical pressure" in interrogations.<ref name="lalyveld">{{Cite news |last=Lelyveld |first=Joseph |date=2005-06-12 |title=Interrogating Ourselves |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/12/magazine/12TORTURE.html?pagewanted=7 |access-date=2008-10-18 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> However, this drew criticism from human rights groups, who maintained that the practices authorized by the commission amounted to torture.<ref name="bbc">{{Cite news |date=2000-02-09 |title=Israel admits torture |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/637293.stm |access-date=2008-10-18 |work=BBC}}</ref> The commission's report faced legal challenges and was nullified in 1999 by a Supreme Court ruling.<ref name="lalyveld" />

Landau's rulings occasionally left his personal political stance unclear, but he consistently opposed judicial activism, cautioning against judges pursuing political agendas to preserve public trust in the judicial system. Notably, he overturned a government decision to temporarily close two newspapers critical of the government, establishing an enduring free-press standard. However, in his role as head of the Central Election Committee, he disqualified an Arab-Israeli Socialist party from elections, deeming its platform "subversive" and a threat to the state's existence.<ref name=":2" />

Historian and senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute, Anita Shapira, commended Landau for his independence and receptivity to novel ideas, noting that he demonstrated a rare willingness to evolve and alter his perspectives.<ref name=":2" />

== Other positions held == Landau served as chairman of the World Zionist Congress tribunal and of the Advisory Commissions on Israel Land Laws Reforms, Criminal Procedures and Administrative Tribunals. He was the first chairman of the Yad Vashem Commission for the Designation of the Righteous Among the Nations.<ref name=":0" />

From 1956 to 1962 and from 1965 to 1966, Landau served as chairman of the board of directors of the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

==Awards and honours== Landau received honorary doctorates from the Technion in 1980 and from the Hebrew Union College in 1997.<ref name=nfc/>

In 1991, he was awarded the Israel Prize for law.<ref name=prize>{{Cite web| title = Israel Prize Official Site – Recipients in 1991 (in Hebrew)| url = http://cms.education.gov.il/EducationCMS/Units/PrasIsrael/Tashmag/Tashnab_Tashmag_Rikuz.htm?DictionaryKey=Tashna}}</ref> In 1993, he was made an honorary chairman of the Technion's board of directors.

== Death == Landau died in Jerusalem on 1 May 2011 after suffering a heart attack.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bernstein |first=Adam |date=2023-05-21 |title=Israeli judge Moshe Landau, who presided over Nazi officer's trial, dies at 99 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/israeli-judge-moshe-landau-who-presided-over-nazi-officers-trial-dies-at-99/2011/05/02/AF0fPfjF_story.html |access-date=2024-01-31 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>

President Shimon Peres stated, "The State of Israel will remember Moshe Landau as a model for ideological and brave leadership." Former Supreme Court President Aharon Barak described him as "one of our greatest judges" and as one of the "founders of Israeli law."<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Altman |first=Yair |date=2011-05-01 |title=Eichmann Trial judge passes away |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4063015,00.html |access-date=2024-02-02 |work=Ynetnews |language=en}}</ref>

==See also== * List of Israel Prize recipients

==References== {{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Landau, Moshe}} Category:1912 births Category:2011 deaths Category:Alumni of the University of London Category:Chief justices of the Supreme Court of Israel Category:Israel Prize in law recipients Category:Jurists from Gdańsk Category:People from West Prussia Category:Adolf Eichmann Category:Burials at Har HaMenuchot Category:German Zionists Category:Israeli Zionists