Salim Joubran ( ar, سليم جبران, he, סלים ג'ובראן; born 1947) is a former

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

of the

Supreme Court of Israel The Supreme Court (, ''Beit HaMishpat HaElyon''; ar, المحكمة العليا) is the Supreme court, highest court in Israel. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all other courts, and in some cases original jurisdiction. The Supreme C ...

. He served as a Supreme Court justice from 2003, and became a permanent member in May 2004. Joubran is of

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Maronite The Maronites ( ar, الموارنة; syr, ܡܖ̈ܘܢܝܐ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group native to the Eastern Mediterranean and Levant region of the Middle East, whose members traditionally belong to the Maronite Church, with the larges ...

heritage and affiliated with the Arab Christian community. Joubran is sometimes described as the first Arab to receive a ''permanent'' appointment in the Israeli Supreme Court. He is also described as the second Arab judge to hold a Supreme Court appointment, preceded by

Abdel Rahman Zuabi Abdel Rahman Zuabi ( ar, عبدالرحمن زعبي, he, עבד אל-רחמן זועבי; November 19, 1932 – September 12, 2014) (also Abd-er-Rahman Zoabi) was an Arab citizen of Israel, Israeli Arab judge. In 1999, he served as an Israeli ...

, who held a fixed nine-month appointment in 1999.

Biography

Salim Joubran was born in the German Colony neighborhood of

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 ...

, to a

family of

Lebanese origin. He graduated from the Terra Santa School of the Franciscan Order in

Acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

. He earned a law degree 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 entered private practice as a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

in 1970. Joubran has four children, three of whom are lawyers. His son Charbel is a lawyer in the field of sports and represents football players in Israel and abroad

Legal career

In 1982, Joubran left private practice after 12 years to accept an appointment as a judge on Haifa's Magistrate's Court, where he served for 11 years. In 1993, he was appointed to Haifa's district court, and served in that capacity for another 10 years, following which he was elevated to the Supreme Court first as a temporary and then as a permanent judge. Joubran is an expert on

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law i ...

. He was also the first Arab to chair the

Central Elections Committee The Israeli Central Elections Committee ( he, ועדת הבחירות המרכזית, ''Va'adet HaBehirot HaMerkazit'') is the body charged under the Knesset Elections Law of 1969 to carry out the elections for the upcoming Knesset. The committe ...

. In the

2013 Israeli municipal elections Thirteen or 13 may refer to: * 13 (number), the natural number following 12 and preceding 14 * One of the years 13 BC, AD 13, 1913, 2013 Music * 13AD (band), an Indian classic and hard rock band Albums * ''13'' (Black Sabbath album), 2013 * ...

, he barred the national ruling party

Likud Likud ( he, הַלִּיכּוּד, HaLikud, The Consolidation), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement, is a major centre-right to right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon ...

's adverts for being "racist and almost certain to hurt the feelings of Arab Israelis and disrupt public order". This also overruled the advice of

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Yehuda Weinstein Yehuda Weinstein ( he, יהודה וינשטיין; born 19 April 1944) is an Israeli lawyer and former Attorney General of Israel, having replaced the previous attorney general, Menachem Mazuz, on 1 February 2010. Biography Weinstein was born ...

, who suggested the committee had no authority to regulate online adverts and posters. Joubran was appointed justice in

in 2004. He was appointed deputy to the Supreme Court chief justice on 12 June 2017. He retired later in 2017, having reached the mandatory retirement age of 70.

Academic and public positions

Joubran was a lecturer at the Law Faculty at the

University of Haifa The University of Haifa ( he, אוניברסיטת חיפה Arabic: جامعة حيفا) is a university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation in 1972, becoming Is ...

. He served as governor of Israel Rotary (dist. 2490), and chairman of the Zeltner Fund for legal research sponsored by Rotary Israel and

Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joubran, Salim 1947 births Hebrew University of Jerusalem Faculty of Law alumni Israeli Maronites Israeli people of Lebanese descent Israeli Arab Christians Judges of the Supreme Court of Israel Living people People from Haifa University of Haifa faculty