Eli Wilchek is an Israeli lawyer and partner at Naschitz Brandes Amir, where he heads the firm's planning and zoning practice. He is known for advising municipalities, planning committees and developers on zoning, municipal and public procurement matters in Israel.
Background
Wilchek's legal formation took place in Israel. He studied law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, an institution whose creation was a central goal of the Zionist movement, which sought a Jewish university in Jerusalem that taught in Hebrew. The university's cornerstone was laid in 1918, and it opened officially in 1925 on Mount Scopus.
Before beginning his professional career, Wilchek interned with Menachem Alon, then a justice of the Supreme Court of Israel, and later with Mishael Cheshin, who subsequently also became a justice of that court. The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body in Israel, and these placements connected his early training with the country's appellate judiciary.
Education
Wilchek earned an LL.B. cum laude from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1986, ranking second in a class of 120. Founded in 1918 and officially opened in 1925, the university was established as a Jewish institution teaching in Hebrew, a cultural project that Zionist leaders regarded as a major accomplishment.
During his law studies he served on the editorial team of Mishpatim, the Hebrew University Law Review, a university publication in which law students edited legal scholarship. He later completed an LL.M. at the University of Pennsylvania in 1989. Penn Law School, part of a private research university in Philadelphia, is among the oldest law schools in the United States.
Wilchek speaks Hebrew, English, French and German, according to the biographical information held in his profile.
Career
Wilchek was admitted to the Israel Bar in 1988 and began his legal career at Naschitz, Brandes & Co. Advocates and Notaries. The firm had been established in 1957, and its early partners included Peter Gad Naschitz and Hanina Brandes. Under its later name, Naschitz Brandes Amir, it became one of Israel's full-service law firms with commercial, civil and regulatory practices.
After about four years at the firm, Wilchek became legal counsel to the Netanya Municipality, a role he held for three and a half years. Netanya is a coastal city in central Israel with its own municipal government, and the post gave him experience in local-authority law. He also served as legal counsel to the Southern District Planning and Building Committee for about four years and to the Tel Aviv District Planning and Building Committee for two and a half years. These district committees are statutory bodies that review planning applications and plans within their geographic areas.
Wilchek later co-founded Cohen, Wilchek & Co. with Avner Cohen, serving as its managing partner and leading its planning and zoning work. The firm's planning practice handled municipal building plans, land re-zoning, objections to plans, expropriation of land, and betterment-levy claims. In 2022 Wilchek was put forward by then justice minister Gideon Sa'ar as a candidate for the Supreme Court of Israel.
In 2024 Cohen, Wilchek & Co. merged into Naschitz Brandes Amir, a combined firm of about 260 lawyers and 400 employees. Wilchek joined as a partner and head of the planning and zoning practice, and he is a member of the firm's executive committee. His work covers zoning approvals, property development, public procurement, and legal advice to municipalities, planning committees, public bodies, contractors and developers. He also lectures at the Hebrew University and the Israel Bar.
Membership
Wilchek is a member of the Israel Bar, the professional body of advocates in Israel, which governs admission to practise law as an advocate in the country. He was admitted to the Israel Bar in 1988. He was also admitted to the New York State Bar Association in 1990. This voluntary association serves lawyers practising in New York State and provides professional resources, continuing legal education and forums for legal practice.
