Dr Yael Levy Ariel

Yael examined the state of diversity in the judiciary, the legal profession and legal education in Israel. The aims of her research were (1) To provide the first comprehensive analysis of judicial diversity in Israel; (2) To provide the first study of diversity amongst Israeli lawyers and law students; (3) To explore perceptions of Israeli lawyers and law students regarding judicial diversity in Israel. 

To achieve this, three large-scale quantitative empirical studies were carried out. The first study draws on publicly available information to profile the diversity of all judges in the general court system in Israel (covering over 700 judges). The other two studies surveyed lawyers and law students in Israel, profiling the diversity of each group and examining their views about the Israeli judiciary, judicial diversity in general and in Israel, as well as their interest in a judicial career.

The three studies therefore provide a unique insight into judicial diversity in Israel as it currently stands as well as the where it may be heading in the immediate and longer-term future. The thesis also places its findings within the continuing debate about judicial diversity in Israel, and it explores how judicial diversity in Israeli fits within the wider scholarship on judicial diversity worldwide.

What is Yael doing now?

Yael currently leads the Law Society’s Solicitor Judges Division. Her role includes support for aspiring and sitting solicitor judges, and working with stakeholders towards increasing the number of solicitors in the courts and tribunals judiciary. She provides policy briefings and papers on the Law Society’s stand on judicial diversity, judicial appointments and issues relating to the representation and progression of solicitor judges. She also includes preparing commentary and policy recommendations and involves ongoing communication with stakeholders, both internally and externally.