עברית

Prof. Shahar Lifshitz

טלפון
03-5318414
דוא"ל
Shahar.Lifshitz@biu.ac.il
משרד
Building 305, Room 121
שעות קבלה
Meetings should be coordinated in advance
ביוגרפיה קצרה

Shahar Lifshitz is Professor of Law at Bar-Ilan University and former Dean of its Faculty of Law. He is the founding head of the Menomadin Center for Jewish and Democratic Law. His research bridges private and public law, focusing on family law, constitutional identity, multiculturalism, and consensus-building and consensus-building in the public sphere. He pays particular attention to marital and nonmarital relationships, marital property regimes, the civil regulation of religious relationships in pluralist societies, and the relationship between Jewish and democratic values. 

Lifshitz has held visiting professorships at Columbia Law School, Emory University School of Law, Cardozo School of Law (Yeshiva University), the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and McGill University Faculty of Law. He was a postdoctoral fellow and visiting scholar at NYU School of Law (Hauser Global Law School Program). He has also taught and presented his work at leading universities and international conferences in the United States, Canada, and Europe. 

Lifshitz’s scholarship has been published in leading international journals and law reviews, including the International Journal of Constitutional Law, Law & Contemporary Problems, the American Journal of Comparative Law, the Canadian Journal of Law & Jurisprudence, North Carolina Law Review, Family Court Review, the Washington and Lee Law Review, and the Cardozo Law Review. His work has been widely cited by courts, including the Supreme Court of Israel, and has influenced legislative reforms and constitutional design. 

Lifshitz has served in numerous public and academic roles involving constitutional design, legislative reform, and the development of social consensus on deeply contested questions. Alongside his role as an advisor to the Israeli Ministry of Justice, he serves as an ad-hoc advisor to the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Legislation Committee. Lifshitz has received numerous competitive research grants and academic honors, including grants from the Israel Science Foundation (ISF), a Fulbright Postdoctoral Fellowship, and a Rothschild Postdoctoral Fellowship. Most recently, he was awarded the 2026 Aharon Barak Prize for Academic Excellence. 

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מחקר

Theory of Contract Law ; Theory of Family Law; History of western Family Law

באמצעי התקשורת

מרץ 2010- הארץ - רפורמה פמיניסטית תכריח קרנות פנסיה וגמל לשלם לגרושות
פברואר 2010- המבשר - היום יינעל כנס העיון לדייני ועובדי בתי הדין הרבניים
דצמבר 2009- מעריב - ברית הזוגיות היא פיתרון שדתיים וחילוניים יוכלו לחיות עימו
דצמבר 2009- ידיעות אחרונות - מבט אישי אל האנשים העומדים בחזית המחקר הישראלי
יולי 2009- אתר בר אילן - האקדמיה מכריזה על טיפוח מצויינות בהוראה
נובמבר 2008- חדשות 2- ריאיון עם עודד בן עמי- חוק יחסי ממון                                                                      יוני 2008- ידיעות אחרונות - החופש מנישואים
דצמבר 2007- חוקרים מן הפקולטה למשפטים נבחרו ע"י העתון גלובס כמובילים בישראל 
אוגוסט 2007- גלובס - עד שהמוניטין יפריד בינינו

פרסומים

Dean (Emeritus) professor shahar lifshitz- Publications:

English Publications:

Edited Books and Special Journal Issues

  1. Shahar Lifshitz & Joseph H.H. Weiler, eds., Agunah: The Shackled Wife in Jewish Law, Int’l J. Const. L. Vol. 18 (2020). 

  2. Hanoch Dagan, Shahar Lifshitz & Yedidia Stern eds., Religion and the Discourse of Human Rights (IDI Press, 2015).

  3. Shahar Lifshitz & Ronah Shotz eds., Marriage Culture and Minority Rights, The Family in Law Review Vol. 5 (2011).

Articles IN PERIDOCALS:

  1. Shahar Lifshitz, Nonmarriage? Rethinking Religious Marriage in Modern States, 47 Cardozo. L. Rev 1589 (2026).

  2. Shahar Lifshitz, Agreements to Waive Paternity, 63 Fam. Ct. Rev. 766 (2025) 

  3. Shahar Lifshitz & Ram Rivlin, Reimagining Marital Property at Death, 32 Elder L.J. 353 (2025).

  4. Shahar Lifshitz & Ram Rivlin, Marital Contracts on the Fault Lines: A Liberal Inquiry, 38 Can. J. L. & Juris. 148 (2024).

  5. Shahar Lifshitz, Unbundling Marriage Law, 62 Fam. Ct. Rev 877 (2024).

  6. Elad Finkelstein & Shahar Lifshitz, The Tension Between the Real and the Paper Deal Concerning "No Oral Modification" Clauses, 81 Cambridge L. J. (2022).

  7. Shahar Lifshitz & Joseph H.H. Weiler, Agunah: The Shackled Wife in Jewish Law, 18 Int’l J. Const. L. 847 (2020).

  8. Shahar Lifshitz, Co-coordinating family expectations, 15 Int’l J. L. Context 223 (2019).

  9. Shahar Lifshitz & Elad Finkelstein, 54 A Hermeneutic Perspective on the Interpretation of Contracts, Am. Bus. L. J. 519 (2017).

  10. Shahar Lifshitz,Neither Nature nor Contract: Toward an Institutional Perspective on Parenthood, 8 L. & Ethics Hum. Rts. 297 (2015).

  11. Shahar Lifshitz, The Liberal Transformation of Spousal Law: Past, Present and Future, 13 Theoretical Inquiries L. 15 (2012). 

  12. Yuval Feldman & Shahar Lifshitz, Behind the Veil of Legal Uncertainty, 74 L. & Contemp. Probs. 133 (2011). 

  13. Shahar Lifshitz & Rhona Shotz, Marriage, Multi-Culturalism, Minority Rights and Constitutional Law, 5 Fam. L. 11 (2011). 

  14. Shahar Lifshitz & Elad Finkelstein, Bargaining in the Shadow of the Mediator: A Communitarian Theory of Post-Mediation Contract, 25 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 667 (2010). 

  15. Shahar Lifshitz,Married Against Their Will? Toward a Pluralist Regulation of Spousal Relationships, 66 Wash. & Lee L. Rev. 1565 (2009).

  16. Shahar Lifshitz,A Potential Lesson from the Israeli Experience for the American Same-Sex Marriage Debate, 22 BYU J. Pub. L. 359 (2007–2008).

  17. Shahar Lifshitz, Distress Exploitation Contracts in the Shadow of No Duty to Rescue, 86 N. C. L. Rev. 315 (2008).

  18. Shahar Lifshitz, Oppressive-Exploitative Contracts: A Jewish Law Perspective, 23 J. L. & Religion 425 (2008).

  19. Shahar Lifshitz, The External Rights of Cohabiting Couples in Israel, 37 Isr. L. Rev. 346 (2003–2004).

  20. Miryam Faust, Shlomo Kravitz Shahar Lifshitz, LD Interpersonal Understanding and Social Behavior in the Classroom, 32 J. Learning Disabilities 248 (1999).

articles & chapters in books:

  1. Shahar Lifshitz, The Accommodation of Religious Marriage: A Liberal Perspective, in Research Handbook of Family Law and Religion (Joel Nichols & Karin Carmit Yefet eds., Edward Elgar, forthcoming 2026).

  2. Shahar Lifshitz, Institutionalizing Cohabitation: A Pluralist Model for Nonmarital Couplehood, in Research Handbook in Family Law and Finance (Polly Morgan ed., Edward Elgar, forthcoming 2026).

  3. Shahar Lifshitz & Ori Aronson, A Jewish and Democratic State: Intra-Jewish Perspectives, in Oxford Handbook of the Israeli Constitution (Aharon Barak, Barak Medina & Yaniv Roznai eds., forthcoming 2026).

  4. Shahar Lifshitz, Civil Regulation of Religious Marriage in Israel from the Perspectives of Liberal Pluralism, Human Rights, and Political Compromise, in Institutionalizing Rights and Religion: Competing Supremacies 206 (Leora Batnitzky, Hanoch Dagan eds., Cambridge Univ. Press, 2016).

  5. Shahar Lifshitz, Distress Exploitation in Jewish Law, in As a Perennial Spring: A Festschrift Honoring Norman Lamm 313 (Bentsion Cohen & Lamm Norman eds., 2013).

  6. Shahar Lifshitz, The Pluralistic Vision of Marriage, in Marriage at the Crossroads: Law, Policy and the Brave New World of 21st Century Families 260 (Elizabeth Scott & Marsha Garrison eds., Cambridge Univ. Press, 2012).

  7. Shahar Lifshitz, Spousal Rights and Spousal Duties The Liberal Case for Privileging Marriage, in The Jurisprudence of Marriage and Other Intimate Relationships 165 (Scott Fitzgibbon, Lynn D. Wardle & A. Scott Loveless, eds., William S. Hein & Co., 2010).

  8. Shahar Lifshitz, A Liberal Analysis of Cohabitants Law, in Family Finances 305 (Bea Verschraegen ed., Jan Sramek Verlag, 2009). 

  9. Shahar Lifshitz, The Best Interest of the Child and Spousal Laws, in The Case for the Child: Towards a New Agenda 45 (Ya'ir Ronen & Charles W. Greenbaum eds., Intersentia, 2008).

Hebrew Publications:

books:

  1. Shahar Lifshitz et al. eds., Neal Hendel Book (Hebrew Univ. 2025).

  2. Shahar Lifshitz et al. eds., Pinchas Shifman book (2025).

  3. Sahar Lifshitz, Spousal property (Bar-Ilan Univ. Press 2016).

  4. Shahar Lifshitz, The Spousal Registry (Israel Democracy Institute, 2006).

  5. Shahar Lifshitz, Cohabitation Law in Israel in Light of a Civil Law Theory of the Family (Univ. of Haifa 2005).

Articles: Selected Publications, 2019–Present

  1. Shahar Lifshitz & Eyal Zamir, Behavioral Analysis of Israeli Family Law: On Marriage, Divorce and Everything in Between, 56 Mishpatim: Heb. U. L. Rev. (2026).

  2. Shahar Lifshitz & Eyal Zamir, Toward a Behavioral Analysis of Family Law, 56 Mishpatim: Heb. U. L. Rev. (2026).

  3. Shahar Lifshitz & Ram Rivlin, Fault by Agreement: Marital Contracts Providing Property Consequences for Infidelity and the Liberalization of Family Law, 54(2) Mishpatim: Heb. U. L. Rev. 465 (2026).

  4. Shahar Lifshitz, Introduction to the Volume Commemorating the Fiftieth Anniversary of The Rise and Fall of Israeli Law, 49 Tau. L. Rev 7 (2026).

  5. Shahar Lifshitz, From Public Petitions to Social Consensus Building: Promoting Social Consensus on Publicly Contested Issues Through the Legal System, 35(2) Bar Ilan L. Stud. (2026).

  6. Shahar Lifshitz & Ronen Avraham, The Supreme Court’s Rulings on National Identity versus Reasonableness: Differences and Future Perspectives, 19 Tau. J.L. & Soc. Change )2025(.

  7. Shahar Lifshitz & Nofar Yakovi Gan-Or, Beyond the Deceased's Presumed Wishes: Toward a New Model for Regulating Posthumous Reproduction, 47 Tau. L. Rev. 595 (2024).

  8. Shahar Lifshitz, Afterword: What We Have Learned from the Betrayal Case, 35(1) Bar Ilan L. Stud. )2024(.

  9. Shahar Lifshitz, Who Is a Spouse: Comments on the Definition of a Spouse in the Draft Inheritance Bill, 46 Tau. L. Rev. (2022).
    https://www.taulawreview.sites.tau.ac.il/_files/ugd/6a76e2_007439a3f6f6…

  10. Shahar Lifshitz, Sex Couple’s Right to Parenthood in Light of the Ethics of Parenthood, 34(2) Bar Ilan L. Stud. 865 (2022).

  11.  Shahar Lifshitz, Civil Regulation of De Facto Divorce, 45(5) Tau. L. Rev. (2022). https://law.tau.ac.il/sites/law.tau.ac.il/files/media_server/law_heb/Article/Lifshitz.pdf

  12. Shahar Lifshitz, Consensual paternity denial, 51 Mishpatim: Heb. U. L. Rev. 231 (2021).

  13. Shahar Lifshitz & Ori Aronson, Jewish and Democratic' as a Methodology, 19 Democratic Culture 9 (2020).

  14. Shahar Lifshitz, Moral judgment of sexual behavior in marriage, autonomy and governance, 43 Tau. L. Rev. 5 (2019).

  15. Shahar Lifshitz & Anat Lifshitz, Child support in Israel: Between religious and civil law, 32(2) Bar Ilan L. Stud. 545 (2019).

Chapters in Books:

  1. Shahar Lifshitz & Elad Kaplan, Hametz in Hospitals During Passover: Bitterness, a Missed Opportunity, and Perhaps a Framework for Consensus After All, in Neal Hendel Book 347 (Alex Stein, Shahar Lifshitz, Hadar Dancig-Rosenberg & Adiel Zimran eds., 2025).

  2. Shahar Lifshitz, The Civil Regulation of Religious Marriage in Israel: A Liberal-Pluralist, Human Rights, and Consensus-Building Perspective, in Pinchas Shifman book 51 (Ram Rivlin, Elimelech Westreich, Ruth Zafran & Shahar Lifshitz eds., 2025).

  3. Shahar Lifshitz & Orit Gan, The Law of Duress: Evolution or Preservation of the Status Quo, in Festschrift in Honor of Prof. Sinai Deutsch 75 (Moshe Gelbard & Ruth Plato-Shinar eds., 2024).

  4. Shahar Lifshitz, Ariel Bendor & Yaron Kaner, Toward an Israeli Covenant: The Tree, the Trunk, and the Branches, in Israeli Convent 257 (2023).

  5. Shahar Lifshitz, The Ethics of Parenting and the Right to Joint Parenthood for Same-Sex Couples, Justice Salim Joubran Book 621 (Aharon Barak eds., 2023).

  6. Shahar Lifshitz, Conflicts between Creditors and Debtors’ Spouses under the Shadow of Marital Property Law, Justice Edna Arbel Book 673 (Shelly Dorit Beinisch eds., 2022).

  7. Shahar Lifshitz, Modifying a contract by behavior, Essays on Contract Law and Theory in Honor of Gabriela Shalev 567 (Yehuda Adar, Aharon Barak & Efi Zemach eds., 2021).

  8. Shahar Lifshitz, Oppressive contracts: Possible inspiration from Jewish law, The Tirkel Festschrift: Studies in Theory, Philosophy and the Law 157 (Aharon Barak, Karin Carmit Yefet & Elyakim Rubinstein eds., 2020). 

  9. Shahar Lifshitz, The Last Mohican - on Humanism, Global Jewish Responsibility, and Civic Unity in the Views of Justice Rubinstein, Elyakim Rubinstein Book 135 (Aharon Barak eds., 2019).

פרסומים בהכנה

PUBLICATIONS IN PROGRESS

 

HEBREW  

BOOKS (AUTHOR)

1. Economic Relationship Between spouses.

2. The Regulation of Contractual Relations in Israel (with Elad Finkelshtein)

 

ENGLISH

ARTICLES

1. Fault, Marriage and Contract Law

2. The Pluralist Vision of Marriage

3. The Rise and Fall of the Contractual Account of Marriage

4. Freedom From Marriage

Last Updated Date : 29/07/2026