25 Facts About Emi Palmor

Emi Palmor is an Israeli lawyer and senior civil servant who served as the Director General of the Ministry of Justice from 1 February 2014 to September 2019.

Emi Palmor is one of the first 20 members of the Facebook Oversight Board.

Emi Palmor was born in Jerusalem to Holocaust survivor parents who immigrated from Romania to Israel in 1960.

Emi Palmor's mother, Shoshana, a concentration camp survivor from Transnistria, was a chemist and worked in a drug factory.

In 1990, Emi Palmor graduated law school from the Hebrew University and interned with Supreme court Judge Zvi Tal in the Jerusalem District Court and with Yair Golan.

Emi Palmor's brother, Yigal Palmor, is a spokesman for the Jewish Agency, who previously served as a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

From 1991 to 1996, Emi Palmor worked as a lawyer in the field of Civil Law at the law firm of Carmeli-Arnon in Jerusalem and was accepted as a partner in the firm in 1995.

In 2000, Emi Palmor was appointed Director of the Pardons department at the Ministry of Justice, a position she held for 14 years, during which she was credited with preparing the Minister of Justice's recommendation to the President.

Furthermore, Emi Palmor served on behalf of the Minister of Justice on special missions related to locating missing IDF soldiers.

Emi Palmor held in addition to her role as Director of the Pardons Department the following positions:.

On 1 February 2014, Emi Palmor was appointed Director General of the Ministry of Justice in place of Dr Guy Rothkopf, after being selected by the government at the suggestion of Justice Minister Tzipi Livni.

Emi Palmor's appointment was a non-political appointment, as she came from the civil service itself.

Emi Palmor continued to serve as a non-political Director General after Ayelet Shaked was appointed Minister of Justice in May 2015.

Emi Palmor led a series of organizational reforms and established new departments, units and tribunals, while developing legal services and digital platforms.

Emi Palmor's dismissal drew widespread criticism and the High Court of Justice has put a temporary freeze on the appointment.

Emi Palmor is considered a pioneer in the field of occupational diversity in the entire government.

Emi Palmor was the first director general to publish a transparent and detailed annual report on the degree of occupational diversity in the Ministry, which was later adopted by President Reuven Rivlin and other Ministries.

Emi Palmor developed methods of recruitment and training as well as educational programs for organizations to promote a work environment that encourages diversity and inclusion for Arabs, Israelis of Ethiopian descent, Ultra-Orthodox Jews, Women, and people with disabilities, all poorly represented in the Civil Service.

In October 2018 Emi Palmor was first to initiate and publish a work-life balance convention in the Ministry of Justice, which limits contact hours with employees and allows for occupational flexibility, thus reducing employee's burnout, and advancing equality and improving opportunities for women and young parents in the workplace.

In February 2016, Emi Palmor was appointed to head the committee on the Eradication of racism against Israelis of Ethiopian Descent by the Ministerial Committee for the Promotion of the integration of Israeli Citizens of Ethiopian origin into Israeli Society, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Further, The Emi Palmor report is taught in Universities and often cited and used in the Courts by Defense Attorneys and Judges, including at the Supreme Court, as a benchmark for evaluating practices of racial discrimination by the police and the Legal System.

Two years after the Emi Palmor Report was accepted by the Government, Emi Palmor initiated and convinced the President of Israel and the Minister of Justice to implement a special pardon scheme for Ethiopians, to erase their criminal record that resulted from police profiling and harassment.

In May 2020, Emi Palmor was selected to be one of the first 20 members of the Oversight Board, an entity that makes content moderation decisions on Facebook, specifically about handling appeals for blocked or removed content.

Emi Palmor is an adjunct lecturer and teaches Governance, Public Policy and Law at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya in the Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy.

Since October 2020, Emi Palmor is a member of the board of governors of the Hebrew university in Jerusalem.