Proportionality in Public Policy

The "Proportionality in Public Policy" research project conducted at the Israel Democracy Institute and supported by an ERC advanced grant explored the balance between rights and competing interests from a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective by utilizing a range of empirical methodologies. 

Proportionality is a prominent legal doctrine created by judges for resolving conflicts that often arise in policy-making between the public interests meant to be promoted by the policy and individual constitutional rights that may be limited by it. Using the proportionality doctrine, judges determine whether and to what extent individual rights can be limited for the sake of the promotion or protection of a public interest. Over the past several decades, proportionality has become a central tenet of global constitutional law and a defining element in the protection of human rights, as well as the topic of much debate and critique.

This booklet provides an overview of the Proportionality project at IDI together with a collection of abstracts of the majority of research outcomes of the project.