Search by Practice
Latest Updates / Startups
July 26, 2023
Companies without a Control Core – Draft Bills Calls for Changes
The number of companies with a decentralized ownership structure, i.e., with no controlling shareholder, has been rising in recent years, as has their share of the capital traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The recently proposed amendment to the Israeli Companies Law aims to revise the corporate governance regulations specifically applicable to such companies.
July 25, 2023
Employees’ Rights in Israel during At-Risk Pregnancies
Sick days, a social security benefit, or a disability pension from the pension fund? Employees have several options for receiving wages during at-risk pregnancies when they are unable to work, each of which has its own advantages and disadvantages.
July 25, 2023
AI in the Workplace – Benefits and Risks
AI technologies have enormous potential. However, using AI technologies in the workplace may result in a variety of exposures. It is important to understand how best to use AI, as well as when never to use it.
July 23, 2023
New EU-US Data Privacy Framework (DPF)
The new arrangement for transferring information about EU citizens to the United States offers European and foreign companies a simpler mechanism to enable their privacy protection procedures to be recognized as GDPR-compliant.
July 20, 2023
Dr. Zvi Gabbay Interview with Tony Petrov on Future of Crypto
Dr. Zvi Gabbay, the head of our Capital Markets Department, was interviewed by Tony Petrov, the chief legal officer at Sumsub. The two discussed financial regulation, the crypto industry, and jurisdictional settings. Topics also included FTX’s collapse, the SEC charges against Coinbase, and the future of crypto regulation.
July 18, 2023
The Profit Test for Dividend Distribution – Israeli Supreme Court Ruling
In a precedential ruling, the Supreme Court stated that the profit test for dividend distribution only includes an examination of the financial statements from the last two years. According to the ruling, there is no room to take into account information regarding an expected loss that has not yet appeared in the reports.
July 17, 2023
Barnea: Representing 120 Apartment Owners in Pinui-Binui Project against Three Recalcitrant Owners
Lawyers from our firm’s Real Estate Department, are advising apartment owners in a residential complex designated for pinui-binui in Herzliya. They represented a group of about 120 apartment owners in court against three recalcitrant owners who are objecting to the project due to their demand for higher recompense from the contractor. The court made the extraordinary decision to order the recalcitrant owners to pay NIS 7.8 million in compensation (NIS 2.6 million apiece). In addition, each recalcitrant owner was ordered to pay NIS 20,000 for legal expenses.
July 15, 2023
Representing Aviv Group in ILS 1.1 Billion Financing Agreement
Terry Almozlino Arnon, Alon Wolner, and Nadav Shoshan represented Aviv Group in a financing agreement for the purchase of land for the construction of 733 housing units in Herzliya. The scope of the financing agreement is over NIS 1.1 billion.
July 12, 2023
Barnea: Representing Phoenix Mortgages (Gold) Ltd. in Framework Agreement for Older Kibbutz Members
Our firm represented Phoenix Mortgages (Gold) Ltd. in signing a framework agreement with the Kama Fund (from the Kibbutz Movement). As part of the agreement, Kama will provide a guarantee to Phoenix for the “gold loans” it grants to kibbutz members over the age of 60 for purchasing housing in kibbutzim. A gold loan can be repaid even after the borrower’s life expectancy and is secured by encumbering the borrower's rights in the residential property attributed to it. Hagit Ben Moshe, the head of our firm’s kibbutz sector practice, and Hani Shraier represented Phoenix.
July 11, 2023
California: Class Action against ChatGPT for Breach of Privacy
Who is responsible for protecting the privacy of the information AI technologies collect? A new class action in California joins a series of AI-related lawsuits that may clarify this question.
July 11, 2023
Barnea: Hosting Global Femtech Accelerator
We were happy to host the global femtech accelerator Tech4Eva for an event at our offices. As part of the event, doctors and entrepreneurs discussed menopause and the need for innovation in increasing awareness and educating physicians and patients. Inbar Gorelick represented the firm at the event and participated in one of the featured panels.
July 10, 2023
Barnea: Representing Bash Gal Sport in Acquisition of Energym
Misha Gitterman and Omri Oren represented Bash Gal Sport of Movement – The Wellness Company, Israel’s leading wellness group, in the acquisition of Energym, a fitness equipment importer, for NIS 30 million
July 10, 2023
Dr. Zvi Gabbay Lectures at Association of Publicly Traded Companies’ Annual Economic Conference
Dr. Zvi Gabbay, head of the firm’s Capital Markets Department, was a guest speaker at the Association of Publicly Traded Companies’ annual economic conference. During his lecture, Zvi referred to the ruling in Inbar v. Ofir Naor (the liquidator of IDB Development Corp.) and to the lessons corporate counsel should take from the ruling with regard to providing legal representation to directors, especially those of a public company.
July 9, 2023
Israeli Institutional Investors and Transfer Rights
Investment funds usually make transfers of units in a fund to third parties contingent upon the approval of the fund managers. This practice may make it difficult for Israeli institutional investors to prove ownership and absolute control over units, as required by the regulations.
July 9, 2023
New Limitations on the Rehabilitation of an Insolvent Company
In a recent ruling in the Bachar Real Estate case, the court prioritized the rights of tenants over insolvent urban renewal companies and created a significant obstacle to the rehabilitation of such companies.Idan Miller the manager of our firm’s insolvency and corporate recovery practice, presents the challenges of the new ruling in an op-ed for Globes.
July 6, 2023
Crowdfunding: Dr. Zvi Gabbay Interview in TheMarker
Dr. Zvi Gabbay, the head of our firm’s Capital Markets Department, was interviewed by TheMarker about how the regulation of crowdfunding can help investors.
July 6, 2023
Conference: ESG – What’s the Story?
Our firm hosted a morning workshop of experts from the ESG and sustainability field. Dr. Zvi Gabbay lectured on the legal angle of ESG. Michal Weiss, the ESG manager at Doral, discussed how to undertake ESG activities within an organization. Hagit Genish Gil lectured on how to make ESG activity suitable for a large organization. Michal Gat, the CEO of Titan, closed the event with a lecture on how to build a branding story that is right for a company’s activities.
July 5, 2023
Barnea: Representing RGE in Hot’s Appeal to the Supreme Court over FREETV
Our firm represented RGE in the appeal the television cable company Hot filed with the Israeli Supreme Court over the Second Authority for Television and Radio’s decision to approve the establishment of FREETV, a joint initiative between RGE and Keshet. In its appeal, Hot claimed approval of the project was invalid because of alleged harm to competition and because of the project’s potential consequences on centralization in the media. The Supreme Court rejected the appeal and ruled it was not within Hot’s authority to determine a legal flaw in the decision-making process or the approval itself. RGE was represented by Zohar Lande, Eran Winner, Ido Vakshi, and Lina Makhuli.
July 4, 2023
Negotiating Tenders
We were invited to be guests on the Israeli Association of Corporate Counsel’s podcast, “ACC On the Road.” In this episode, we discussed key issues in the field of tenders, including whether and how to conduct negotiations during tender procedures, the best way to address such negotiations in tender documents, and more.
July 3, 2023
Doing Business in Israel: Aspects of Antitrust and Competition Laws during Mergers and Acquisitions
The Director General’s position is that the Economic Competition Law also applies to a merger between an Israeli entity and a foreign entity that has not been registered as such in Israel if: (a) the foreign entity holds more than 25% of an Israeli company, or (b) more than 25% of the foreign entity’s shares are held by an Israeli company, or (c) the foreign entity has a “place of business” in Israel.