Last update - 00:00 04/02/2007
Ministerial panel okays bill calling for protocols of Supreme Court
By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent
The Ministerial Committee on Legislative affairs on Sunday approved a bill calling for protocols to be recorded in every Supreme Court trial.
At present, official protocols are not recorded at the Supreme Court level. Court stenographers summarize the trials for internal use, but do not record the justices' statements during deliberations.
According to the bill, which was submitted by MK Michael Eitan (Likud), every court will be required to record trials to reflect every word that was said and heard during the trial, including everything said by the justices.
If approved, the bill would also allow any side taking part of the deliberations to request to tape and to transcribe the trial at their own expense.
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who serves as chairman off the committee, said "I don't see a place where there is more importance for transparency and documentation."
Following approval by the panel, the bill is expected to be raised for a preliminary reading in the Knesset plenum over the coming days.