About Us
Adalah (“Justice” in Arabic) is an independent human rights organization and legal center. It was founded in November 1996 as a joint project of two leading Arab NGOs - The Galilee Society and the Arab Association for Human Rights (HRA), and it became an independent NGO in 1997.
Adalah’s mission is to promote human rights in Israel in general and the rights of the Palestinian minority, citizens of Israel, in particular (around 1.5 million people, or 20% of the population). This work also includes promoting and defending the human rights of all individuals subject to the jurisdiction of the State of Israel (e.g. Palestinian residents of the OPT). Adalah is the first Palestinian Arab-run legal center in Israel, and the sole Palestinian organization that works before Israeli courts to protect the human rights of Palestinians in Israel and in the OPT.
Since its establishment, Adalah has brought about 250 impact litigation cases before the Israeli Supreme Court and the lower courts, which have spanned diverse fields including land and planning rights, civil and political rights, and economic and social rights. Numerous cases have resulted in landmark, precedent-setting decisions. In order to achieve its goals, Adalah:
Brings impact litigation and other legal interventions before Israeli courts and state authorities;
Provides legal consultation to individuals, NGOs, and institutions;
Appeals to international institutions and fora;
Organizes conferences, and publishes reports and analyses of critical legal issues;
Conducts extensive media and social media outreach in Arabic, Hebrew and English;
Trains legal apprentices and new lawyers in human rights litigation and advocacy.