Uri Shoham ( he, אורי שהם; August 3, 1948) is a judge on the
Supreme Court of Israel.
He previously served as a district court judge in
Tel-Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...
and a
Judge Advocate General. His appointment to the court was viewed as a victory for
Mizrahi Jews
Mizrahi Jews ( he, יהודי המִזְרָח), also known as ''Mizrahim'' () or ''Mizrachi'' () and alternatively referred to as Oriental Jews or ''Edot HaMizrach'' (, ), are a grouping of Jewish communities comprising those who remained i ...
, as the court had consisted largely of judges of
Ashkenazi
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
descent.
Shoham was born in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
on 3 August 1948 and moved to
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
with his family in 1951.
He grew up in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
and attended the Ironi Dalet High School. In 1966, he began his military service in the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
as part of the
Atuda
Atuda, or Academic Atuda ( he, עתודה אקדמית, literally: Academic Reserve), is a program of the Israeli Defense Forces which enables high school graduates to defer the draft and attend university prior to their military service. After th ...
program, serving in the
Combat Engineering Corps
The Israeli Combat Engineering Corps ( he, חיל ההנדסה הקרבית, ''Heil HaHandasa HaKravit'') is the combat engineering forces of the Israel Defense Forces.
The Combat Engineering Corps beret's color is silver and its symbol featur ...
. In 1971, he received a
BA in law from the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...
, and received a law license in 1975. In 1977, he received a master's degree in law from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He served in the
Military Advocate General
The Military Advocate General (MAG Corps') ( he, הפרקליטות הצבאית, ''HaParklitut HaTzva'it'') is responsible for implementing the rule of law within the Israel Defense Forces. The unit's objectives include integrating the rule of l ...
's office of the IDF in a number of positions, including as a judge and prosecutor in the IDF legal system.
[http://jpress.org.il/Olive/APA/NLI_Heb/SharedView.Article.aspx?parm=V3jdJGJ94Ed6LhOGKKDlZwZ%2FNkDrk7XZxUlENDk%2BWQipOFtwRW0%2BhcaRMnU0L8IhYw%3D%3D&mode=image&href=DAV%2f1980%2f04%2f30&page=3&rtl=true ] He served as President of the Military Court of Appeals for the Judea, Samaria, and Gaza Areas, was Chief Military Prosecutor from 1995 to 2000, and then served as Deputy President of the
Military Court of Appeals
The Israeli Military Court of Appeals is the supreme military court of the Israel Defense Forces. It considers and judges over appeals submitted by the Military Advocate General which challenge decisions rendered by the District Military Tribunals ...
. He completed his military service with the rank of Brigadier General.
In September 2001, he was appointed a judge on the Tel Aviv District Court. While serving in this position in 2009, he imposed several long sentences on members of organized crime groups. Shoham was threatened by the crime groups, and he was given increased security by the police.
He was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2012.
Shoham is married with two daughters.
References
External links
*
1948 births
Living people
Judges of the Supreme Court of Israel
Iraqi Jews
Israeli people of Iraqi-Jewish descent
Mizrahi Jews
{{Asia-law-bio-stub