State attorneys threaten labor dispute

The labor dispute warning follows announcement of decision made by the State Prosecutor’s Office that certain civil cases are to be outsourced.

By JOANNA PARASZCZUK
Bibi netanyahu (photo credit: JPost Staff)
Bibi netanyahu
(photo credit: JPost Staff)
The State Attorneys’ Organization threatened a labor dispute on Wednesday in response to a decision by the State Prosecutor’s Office to outsource up to 20 percent of civil cases.
The labor dispute warning followed an announcement on Tuesday of a decision made by the State Prosecutor’s Office that certain civil cases are to be outsourced.
Boaz Goldberg, chairman of the State Attorneys’ Organization, slammed the decision in an e-mail to state prosecutors, in which he dubbed the move “privatization” and said it will mean “an immediate weakening of the State Attorney’s Office, to such an extent that it will weaken and damage the rule of law.”
Goldberg added that attorneys should not accept the move, which would “divide cases into ‘cream cases’ and ‘junk cases.’” “The role of the state prosecution and of prosecutors is to represent the public’s interest in the courts, in every single case,” he noted.
Goldberg added that the State Attorneys’ Organization had not received information from the State Prosecutor’s Office regarding what sort of cases would be outsourced.
The State Attorneys’ Organization organized a labor dispute four years ago over similar plans to outsource cases, he noted.
That dispute was partially resolved when a collective agreement was signed allowing the outsourcing only of certain cases and those that were not governmental in nature.
However, Goldberg accused the current State Attorney and his deputies of reneging on this agreement.
In response to Goldberg’s letter, Deputy State Prosecutor Orit Son told state attorneys in an e-mail on Wednesday that the decision to outsource civil cases was not privatization, but a move designed to help state attorneys prioritize resources.
“The idea that the State Prosecutor’s Office can be a ‘bottomless pit’ of resources and cases is unrealistic,” said Son.
According to Son, cases for which the prosecutor’s office could not provide “added value,” and those which did not involve issues of public complexity or precedent-setting rulings, would be outsourced.
The 800-strong State Attorneys’ Organization plans to petition the Labor Court over the matter.