Legislative Drafting in Transitional States: The Case of Palestine

Abstract

This paper explores the ongoing efforts of Palestinian legislative drafters to comply with modern standards in the drafting of legislation. It presents an example on how new States might start legislating from scratch and gradually develop a system that could function despite the extreme challenges, even under foreign occupation with limited technical and financial resources. The paper starts by describing the legislative process in Palestine, with focus on the drafting of parliamentary statutes. It then introduces the legislative drafting techniques as reflected in the ‘Legislative Drafting Manual,’ a guide currently in use by the parliament and administrative institutions. It concludes by highlighting the achievements and pitfalls that characterized the Palestinian legislative drafting journey over the past twenty years.