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October 28 2013

Israeli Supreme Court to Rule on Demand for Disclosure of Criminal Record

"A special panel of seven Supreme Court justices will soon decide whether it is legal for an employer to demand the disclosure of a job applicant 's criminal record, and whether such disclosure can be required in other circumstances, such as a condition for bidding on a tender. The Supreme Court ruled in February that such demands were legal, but now the new, expanded panel, headed by Supreme Court President Asher Grunis, will rehear the case. Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein submitted his opinion, in which he states that such a demand - including for disclosure of an applicant 's criminal record or any open criminal investigations, including ones that never even reached the indictment stage - should be legally barred. However, Weinstein did write that an employer should be allowed to ask a candidate about any criminal past in a job interview. In the ruling, the Supreme Court allowed such requests for a declaration on a criminal record, even though by law the employer is not allowed access to such records. The court ruled that the right to privacy and the state's interest in rehabilitating prisoners was offset by the rights of employers and others to protect themselves and the public ""from unreasonable risks."""