The
Buchmann Faculty of Law
At Tel Aviv University's
Faculty of Law, staff and
students alike breath new
meaning every day into democracy's most cherished values. Israel's leading
law school pulses with academic innovation, intellectual drive and social
responsiblity. Interdis ciplinary activities and study programs continually
expand the borders of juridic knowledge and practice — and enhance the
law's contribution to all fields at Tel Aviv University and to Israeli society in
general. The Faculty's ranks, all deeply rooted in advanced legal
scholarship, include internationally-renowned theoreticians, many of Israel's
top jurists, legislators, and local and national leaders.
Big, bigger, biggest: Set amidst TAU's palm-dotted campus, the
Buchmann
Faculty is the largest law school in the country and is part of
Israel's largest university and the world's largest Jewish university.
The Faculty serves all Israel as w ell as its cultural, legal and
commercial center.
Invigorating balance: The Faculty strives to achieve three critical goals: excellence
in teaching, the publication of world-class scholarship, and involvement in Israeli legal,
political, and community life. From the tension between theory a nd practice comes
energy — harnessed by the Faculty to create a dynamic working and learning
environment.
Scholarly talents: The Faculty takes particular pride in its academic staff, many of
whom completed advanced degrees at the world's finest law schools. Today, these
scholars publish in prestigious law reviews and university presses on vital legal and
social issues. They extensively draw upon non-juridical fields -- from physics to social
psychology — through cross-Faculty symposia, seminars and lecture series. Faculty
members are also regularly requested to lecture at leading institutions ab road, while
visiting professors bring their expertise to TAU.
Nation's best students: Admission standards have reached heights unparalleled
among Israeli law schools. As a result, the Faculty enjoys a top-notch student body,
with some 1,600 students in the LL.B. track and 300 students in the advanced d egrees
programs. The Faculty's legal education framework encourages diversity, keen
thinking, and interdisciplinarity. Alumni are provided with placement services for
clerkships and professional positions.
Fitting facilities: The Faculty of Law complex, set amidst attractive plazas and
greenery, consists of three buildings: the five-storey Trubowicz Building of classrooms,
clinics, institutes and administration; the David J. Light Law Library building; and the
ultra-modern five-story W. A. Minkoff Building housing the new library wing and staff
offices.
The idea of establishing a law school in Tel Aviv can be traced to the beginning of this
century in Russia. However, the formal establishment of the Higher School of Law and
Economics took place only in 1934, under the patronage of the Mayor of Tel Aviv, Meir
Dizengoff, and the first classes began in March 1935. The British Mandate authorities
refused to recognize the Law School; graduates who wished to practice law had to
complete their degrees abroad.
With the establishment of the State of Israel, this obstacle was lifted. In 1959, the
cornerstone of Trubowicz, the first building of the TAU campus, was laid in Ramat Aviv.
Eight years later the Law School became a full-fledged TAU Faculty. In 1993, the
Faculty was renamed as the Buchmann Faculty of Law, dedicated to the memory of
Josef Buchmann's parents, Eliezer and Haya Sara Buchmann, who perished in the
Holocaust.