Gad Barzilai. “The Ambivalent Language of Lawyers in Israel: Liberal Politics, Economic Liberalism, Silence and Dissent.” In Fighting for Political Freedom: Comparative Studies of the Legal Complex and Political Liberalism. Edited by Terence C. Halliday, Lucien Karpik, and Malcolm M. Feeley, pp. 247-277, Oxford, U.K: Hart Publishing, 2007.

This chapter argues that lawyers are inherently political agents whose daily professional practices shape the allocation of public goods and structure political life. Rather than limiting analysis to overt political activism or specific subgroups (such as cause lawyers or government attorneys), the chapter conceptualizes the legal profession as a whole, as a “legal complex,” that both legitimizes and legalizes the nation-state. Through their reliance on formal doctrines of jurisdiction, standing, procedure, and professional ethics, lawyers reinforce the state’s authority even when expressing dissent.

Within liberal political orders, lawyers are positioned as key agents in advancing individual rights and procedural justice, two core normative commitments of liberalism. However, the chapter moves beyond the question of whether lawyers support or oppose the state. It argues that lawyers shape the very boundaries of political discourse: when they speak, or remain silent, while operating through legal frameworks, they define what counts as legitimate political argument and deliberation. The Israeli case serves as a contextual example, illustrating how the size, mobilization, and sociopolitical engagement of the bar influence democratic deliberation. The broader theoretical contribution is that the legal profession, collectively, plays a decisive role in structuring democratic space, not only by challenging or empowering the state but by signaling the limits of political contestation itself.