Eliyahu Matza

Eliyahu Matza was born in 1935 in Tel Aviv

Eliyahu Matza was born in Tel Aviv to Gabriel Matza and Yafa (Jamila) Matalon. His mother was born in Jaffa to a family of Sephardi origin, and his father was born in Jerusalem after his family came from Greece. He finished Geula high school in 1953 and joined the IDF.

He began studying law in Tel Aviv in 1956 and earned his law degree in 1962. He became a lawyer in 1963 and worked in private civil practice. In 1974 he received a master's degree in law from Tel Aviv University.

In February 1972 he joined the career army as a military court judge and later headed the Central District military court. He became a magistrate court judge in Bat Yam in 1978 and a district court judge in 1984. He was named a temporary Supreme Court justice in 1989 and was chosen for a permanent seat in 1991.

In 1999 he chaired the Central Elections Committee for the 15th Knesset. He became Deputy President of the Supreme Court in 2004 and retired in 2005. In 2009 he was appointed to head a state commission of inquiry on the handling of the disengagement evacuees.

After retiring he supported expanding the Dying Patient Law and served as president of the Lilach association. He had a son and a daughter. He died on 29 October 2021 and was buried in Einat.