Global Law Working Papers
2007 Series
GLWP 01/07
Author
David Flatto
Gruss Scholar in Residence (2005-2006)
Title
"It's Good to be King: The Monarch's Role in the Mishnah's Political and Legal System"
Abstract
Recent political and legal discourse concerning the constitutional principle of separation of powers has sparked increasing interest in its historical background. Returning to the early Hebraic tradition, we discover a nuanced variation of this doctrine.
Salient rabbinic passages which call for the separation of the king from the judiciary and the priesthood resist the regnant ancient tendency that invests all powers in the monarchy. Promoting the notion of an independent judiciary, early rabbinic writings also endorse the independent political autonomy of the executive. Further, they link the notion of an independent judiciary in surprising ways with the doctrine of sovereign immunity. What emerges is a distinctive scheme wherein the king cannot judge, but in many respects the court (and the priesthood) cannot govern either. Although these texts no longer carry authoritative weight, their allure and significance for political theory continues.
Contact the Author
d_flatto@yahoo.com
http://www.law.nyu.edu//global/workingpapers/2007/ECM_DLV_015742