"Aharon Barak [states] that it is precisely because judges are not politicians that they are the right people to undertake the constitutional role of ensuring that the legislature and the executive comply with legal requirements... Barak points out that tension between the courts and other branches of government is natural and it is desirable. If the courts' decisions were always ... Read morewelcomed by the executive, judges would not be doing their job properly. Barak's thesis is ... of fundamental importance."
David Pannick, Times of London "Learned and perceptive, this work deserves the attention of any reader interested in the role that judges play, and ought to play, in a democratic republic."
Charles Gardner Geyh, Trial "Barak sets out in a systematic way, the questions, dilemmas and solutions he has adopted as a judge. He notes the principles that should guide judges in a democratic society, when faced with constitutional questions that have implications over and above the specific concerns of the parties to a legal disput... [E]ngaging and intellectually stimulating... The Judge in a Democracy should be a must read in any course or research on judicial and constitutional politics."
Menachem Hofnung, Law and Politics Book Review "Barak argues for striking a balance between the protection of human rights and the preservation of national security interests, but is most adamant in insisting that some degree of security might have to be sacrificed in order to preserve a nation's democratic essence... Barak has done much to humanize the role of the judge. He describes the process of interpreting law as a profoundly human one, in which the adjudicator is constantly balancing, testing, agonizing."
Benjamin Soskis, Forward "The Judge in a Democracy explains that there was nothing in either the US or the Israeli constitutions allowing judges to strike down acts of the legislature. Even so, he says, the courts in both countries have held that judicial review of legislation is implied by interpretation of the constitution."
Joshua Rozenberg, Daily Telegraph "Presenting a remarkably balanced view of the power and limitations of judges, President Barak offers a comprehensive yet humble account of the role of the judiciary within a democratic society."
Harvard Law Review "Barak's writing is not merely clear, it exudes the logical structure that the modern law endeavors, and often claims, to exhibit... For the professional of law ... Barak's book may serve as the beginning of a revealing look at the social role of the law."
Mathieu Deflem, European Legacy Show Less