Justice Mishael Cheshin, one of the most prominent legal figures in Israel's history, died Saturday after a long battle with cancer. Cheshin, 79, passed away at his Herzliya home, surrounded by his family. Cheshin, who served on the Supreme Court between 1992 and 2006, and retired as its deputy president at the age of 70, is credited with penning groundbreaking rulings that shaped Israel's legislative and judicial norms, and was a champion of good governance, the fight against corruption in the civil service and the judiciary's independence. "Misha is gone. He was a mentor and a friend. His rulings were fueled not only by his sharp mind, but also by his warm heart and his conscience," President Reuven Rivlin said Saturday after learning of Cheshin's death. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement saying, "I offer my condolences to the Cheshin family over the passing of Justice Mishael Cheshin. He was one of our most prominent jurists, a man with a sharp mind, original thinking and great sensitivity." Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Cheshin was "an original, creative justice. His sharp tongue and unique tempter, ethical and humane values, and profound understanding of the law made him one of the greatest judges of our generation." Cheshin was born in Lebanon in 1936, to Shneor and Ruth Cheshin. His father was one of the first five Supreme Court justices named to the bench in 1948, mere weeks after Israel's inception. He studied law at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and began his legal career at the State Attorney's Office in 1962, were he headed the High Court of Justice Division. He went on to serve in the Justice Ministry for 16 years, and was deputy attorney general from 1974 to 1978. After being passed over for the role of attorney general, Cheshin opened a private law practice in the early 1980s. He was named to the Supreme Court in 1992, and became the first private sector attorney to be named as a Supreme Court judge. Throughout his career, Cheshin was lauded as a gifted jurist, and he became known for his temperament as well as for his lyrical rulings, in which he would often quote his favorite literary works, such as Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." One of the most famous cases he presided over was the 1988 gang rape of a 14-year-old girl in Kibbutz Shomrat, in northern Israel. His ruling in the case, stating that to secure a rape conviction the prosecution does not need to prove the victim forcibly resisted her attacker, only that she refused sexual contact -- "'No' will forever mean 'no,' and 'no' can never be perceived as or mistaken for 'yes,'" he wrote -- led to fundamental changes in law enforcement and the judiciary's perception of sex crimes, and to legislative changes that aggravated sentencing in rape cases. 'The legal world has been orphaned' Chief Justice Miriam Naor eulogized Cheshin Saturday, saying, "He was one of the pillars of the Supreme Court. His rulings had a significant effect on shaping legal thinking, even when he represented the minority opinion." Former Chief Justice Aharon Barak said, "He was one of my closest friends. We were in law school together and then worked together in the Justice Ministry. Misha was a legal genius. There was no one else like him. " Cheshin's passing "is devastating," former Chief Justice Dorit Beinisch said Saturday. "We are all so sad. We lost a great judge and dear man. Truth and justice were in his blood. The legal world has been orphaned. He was a fierce champion of righting any wrong in our midst, and for the realization of equality before the law and judicial independence. Cheshin was a man of many contradictions, with a warm heart and a tempestuous nature. He was a close friend and my heart goes out to his family." Former Supreme Court Justice and Israeli Press Council President Dalia Dorner said, "We have lost a great man and a great justice. He was an outstanding jurist with a very unusual style. There was nothing he loved more than the law." Cheshin took a strict, albeit sometimes contradictory, approach to cases pertaining to matters of national security. He allowed Shin Bet security agency investigators to use physical duress against suspects defined as "ticking time bombs," but opposed razing terrorists' homes as a means of generating deterrence. In 2006, during a hearing on a High Court petition filed by the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel against the government over the targeted killing of terrorists, when the petitioner's attorney argued that "terrorists also have a right to life," Cheshin famously interrupted her saying, "Try telling that to the victims of Ben Yehuda and the Dolphinarium [attacks]." Both terrorist attacks took place in 2001: The Ben Yehuda Street dual bombing claimed the lives of 11 people, and the Dolphinarium discotheque bombing left 25 people dead, 21 of them teenagers. Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said Cheshin's "original rulings, with their unusual lyrical style, will continue to inspire generations of jurists to come." Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog (Zionist Union) eulogized Cheshin, saying, "Justice Cheshin was a legal giant. He was a rare jurist, one of the guardians of Israeli democracy and law. His directness and his inspiring writing were among the cornerstones of the Israeli legal system, and they taught us about civil and human rights, equality and freedom of speech, all while ensuring Israel's security and adhering to its democratic and Jewish character. I offer my heartfelt condolences to the family." Former Justice Minister Tzipi Livni (Zionist Union) said, "Justice Cheshin left behind sharp, direct, uncompromising rulings, eloquently phrased in a way that has shaped, filled and preserved the values of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. His words on judicial independence -- 'Whoever raises his hand to my home, the Supreme Court, I shall sever his hand' -- may have seemed harsh, but we must treat them as his will for us to follow." Meretz leader Zehava Galon said, "Cheshin revolutionized the way victimized women were treated, and he was also the first judge to rule that sex trafficking was a form of modern slavery. He was a fierce champion for human rights and the High Court's independence. I hope his legacy continues to guide the courts." The Israeli Bar Association released a statement saying, "The Israeli Bar Association offers its condolences to the Cheshin family over the untimely passing of the Honorable Justice Cheshin, a prominent legal figure, who penned a long list of rulings that carved the very foundations of Israeli democracy." Cheshin is survived by his wife, Ruth, and two children, Efrat and Yoel. His funeral was set for Sunday afternoon at Kibbutz Givat Hashlosha, in central Israel.
