High Court Freezes Communications Law and Orders Government to Answer Challenges

The High Court of Justice suspended the entry into force of the Communications (Broadcasting) Law on October 29 and ordered the respondents to explain why it should not be annulled over alleged defects in the legislative process. Supreme Court President Isaac Amit and Justices Alex Stein and Yechiel Kasher issued the orders. The decision does not establish that the alleged defects occurred or invalidate the law. The court separated the procedural challenge from objections to the law’s substantive provisions. It issued a conditional order concerning the legislative process, while leaving the parties’ arguments about the content of the legislation reserved. A separate interim injunction keeps the law from taking effect until another decision. Opposition to the conditional order will be heard by an expanded panel of nine justices. The judges referred to a July 13, 2026 hearing that had focused on the legislative procedure and the significant questions it raised. In deciding the interim-injunction requests, they said the government had chosen not to submit a response despite being given time to do so. They therefore decided those requests on the written material without holding an oral hearing on them. The respondents must file their answering affidavits by January 7, 2027. The proceedings will first address the legislative-process question, while the substantive challenges remain open for later consideration. The interim freeze remains in place pending a further court decision.