Israeli Land Regime in Comparative Perspective – Immediately after its independence from the British Mandate in 1948, the state of Israel embarked on the construction of a new land regime. This new “National Collectivist” property system stood on three major pillars: 1) Nationalization of land from Palestinians and of land without formal ownership: In less than two decades, more than 90% of the land in Israel became State property or other form of public property. 2) Selective allocation of limited rights in land (mostly the right to possess and use) within Jewish groups. 3) Centralized control of this public property by a special body, the Israel Land Administration (ILA) that enjoyed vast powers in devising the legal relations between the owners of the land (The State of Israel, the Development Authority and the Jewish National Fund) and Israeli citizens.
This basic legal structure - set in the formative period of the 1950s - remained in place roughly until the early 1990’s. Since then, a new regime has gradually emerged, characterized by a movement towards privatization of large segments of the bundle of property rights, from their public owners to select groups within the Israeli society. While the former period was characterized by a cavalier attitude to property rights, the latter witnesses a rise of individualistic rhetoric, and an increasing importance of the right of property. Nevertheless, the nationalist agenda is still quite strong, especially in the occupied territories but also elsewhere. The course will examine the making and transformation of the Israeli land regime and compare it to property regimes in countries such as the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Pakistan and South Africa that—like Israel—share a legacy of British rule.
The main issues examined are: Introduction (focusing on the Israeli society and on legal geography); Ottoman and Mandate land law; major nationalization instruments (e.g. the Absentee Property Act); adverse possession, prescription, license and settlement of title; land allocation in the formative period; the Israeli Land Authority; privatization mechanisms; the agricultural sector (e.g. kibbutzim, moshavim and individual ranches); public housing; the land regime in the occupied territories and the separation wall; The constitutional right of property (including takings law).
Reading materials include statutes, court decisions, newspaper clippings and secondary sources. All reading materials are in English. No previous background in Israeli Law/history is assumed.