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Latest Updates / Litigation
February 13, 2022
Nothing Lasts Forever – New Israeli Supreme Court Ruling Expected to Reduce Legal Protection Granted to Managers and Board Members in Israel
After a lawsuit filed by liquidators of a company that collapsed against the company’s former officers, directors, and independent auditors was dismissed in limine, a new Israeli Supreme Court ruling overturned that decision and allowed the liquidators to move forward with the lawsuit, alleging that lack of oversight was what led to the company’s collapse. The significance of this new ruling is that the “business judgment rule” will no longer be interpreted as providing automatic protection to executives, and they may now be compelled to participate in lengthy legal proceedings to prove their entitlement to legal protection.
January 30, 2022
Representing Owners of Luxury Tel Aviv Property in Lawsuit Filed against Them
Israeli basketball player Yoni Nir has filed a lawsuit against three women who own a property in the upscale Nahalat Yitzhak neighborhood in Tel Aviv. The lawsuit alleges the women refused to abide by a "binding sale agreement" signed between them for the sale of the property in the amount of NIS 4.9 million together with renovation costs. Our firm’s Daphna Klein and Shahar Poller Atzil are representing the defendants in the case.
January 11, 2022
Hadar Israeli Interviewed about Extradition Proceedings on Channel 12's "Galit and Yoav"
Hadar Israeli, a partner in our firm, was interviewed on the Channel 12 television program hosted by Galit Gutman and Yoav Limor. She explained the difference between an extradition and a summons to an interrogation. You are invited to watch (starting at 32:00).
January 10, 2022
Dramatic Ruling on Excessive Pricing: District Court Denies Two Motions to Certify Class Actions against Tnuva
In December 2021, the Jerusalem District Court dismissed two motions to certify a class action against the leading dairy manufacturer in Israel, Tnuva, for charging excessive prices. Both the motion and the dismissal are part of an intense dispute for years. The dispute revolves around whether the prohibition of a monopolist charging an “unfair” price applies to charging excessive fees. In 2014, the director-general of the Competition Authority published a public statement on the prohibition of excessive pricing by a monopoly.
January 2, 2022
Lawsuit filed against Berggruen Residential Limited and Hajaj-Cohen Investments
Our firm is representing the tenants' representatives, as well as 189 apartment owners in the luxury project Meier on Rothschild, in a lawsuit filed against the project's entrepreneur and founder, Berggruen Residential Limited and Hajaj-Cohen Investments. The NIS 2.8 million lawsuit alleges very serious deficiencies and omissions were discovered in the project.
December 23, 2021
I Shared Someone Else’s Photo on Instagram. Did I Commit Copyright Infringement?
Sharing images on Instagram and other social network platforms is such a common practice that we do it without hardly even thinking about it. But we must be aware that sharing a piece of creative content (picture, text, etc.) has implications in terms of copyright laws.
December 16, 2021
Representing Azrieli Group against MOH Plan to Mark Vaccinated People with Bracelets in Malls
As part of a new wave of COVID-19 restrictions, the Israeli Ministry of Health sought to implement a plan to mark vaccinated people with bracelets in all malls and shopping centers, thereby allowing them to walk freely around such complexes (as opposed to unvaccinated people). The Azrieli Group, through Advs. Zohar Lande, Eran Winner, Anat Even-Chen, Ido Vakshi, and Gaya Tsarfati, sent an urgent appeal to the Prime Minister, the Ministers of Health, Economy and Industry, and Justice, and the Attorney General. In the appeal, we argued that the plan is “discriminatory, offensive, unreasonable, and disproportionate.” In light of the criticism, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Health have decided to walk back the bracelet plan and not include it in the government vote for implementing the Green Pass in malls.
December 15, 2021
Shareholder Dispute at SeeTree Startup
Advs. Eyal Nachshon and Shachar Rothschild represent the minority shareholders of the SeeTree startup. The minority shareholders, who until recently held 3.8% of the company’s shares, claim in the lawsuit we filed that their holdings were diluted to 3.074%, depriving them of their rights, while the majority shareholders exceeded their authority and violated obligations to them. The startup completed a sixth round of funding this year at a value of USD 70 million.
December 12, 2021
To Tag or Not to Tag: Delta Wins Suit over Sharing Customer's Photo on Instagram
An Israeli magistrates' court recently discussed the issue of copyright infringement regarding the use of a tagged photo on Instagram. According to Adv. Gal Livshits, a firm partner interviewed by Israel Hayom on the subject, "Sharing a picture of others on social media is so common we do it often without even thinking, but we must be aware that sharing a piece of content (picture, text, etc.) has consequences."
November 15, 2021
Extradition and Prosecution of Israelis by Foreign Courts
In recent weeks, numerous news articles have reported on the arrests of Israeli citizens resulting from foreign investigations conducted abroad. In one instance, more than 20 employees of a Tel Aviv based company engaging in forex investment marketing were arrested following an FBI investigation.
October 27, 2021
Representation in Defamation Lawsuit against Channel 13 and Guy Lerer
We are representing the singer Eyal Golan in a NIS 1 million defamation lawsuit against Channel 13 and journalist Guy Lerer, the host of TV program Hazinor, following an investigative article that dealt with the marketing of agricultural land by a company owned by Golan. Adv. Dror Arad-Ayalon and Adv. Shir Rozenzweig are providing representation in the matter. They argued in the statement of claim that Golan's company is not connected to the allegations presented in the article and that Golan and his company are not involved in the marketing process whatsoever.
October 20, 2021
Double the Trouble: What Happens When a Class Action Lawsuit tries to "Piggyback" off Another?
Many class action proceedings end in settlement. The settlement agreement is designed, inter alia, to facilitate an efficient and fair resolution to the proceeding, in a manner that also provides certainty to the parties. Essentially, it "takes on the risk" for all parties involved—the class action plaintiffs and their legal representation, the class, and the defendants. Settlement certification by the court constitutes res judicata, and ensures the preclusion of repeated claims regarding the subject of the settlement.
October 14, 2021
Representing ISI in a Petition Against the Israeli Ministry of Health
We represented Israel Scientific Instruments Ltd. (ISI) in a petition filed with the Jerusalem District Court against the Ministry of Health and others, claiming that the tender for the purchase of coronavirus tests managed by the Ministry of Health was conducted unequally while giving an unfair advantage to ISI's competitors.
Eran Winner, Ido Vakshi and Gaya Tsarfati, represented ISI in the petition. They petitioned the court with an order to cancel the tender and publish a new one.
September 14, 2021
District Court Ruling: Azrieli Foundation Exempt from Paying Taxes on Dividends
An Israeli district court rejected the Israel Tax Authority’s attempt to force the Azrieli Foundation to pay taxes in the amount of tens of millions of shekels for dividends it received and continues to receive due to its holding in Azrieli Group's shares. The court accepted the tax appeal, which was filed by Barnea Jaffa Lande, and ruled that the Azrieli Foundation, a non-profit organization that works for the public good in Israel, is not the controlling owner of Azrieli Group and is therefore entitled to a tax exemption. The court ruled, among other things, that the ITA’s position could have a chilling effect in relation to business entities’ support of philanthropic associations. Our firm's Zohar Lande, Eyal Nachshon, Harel Perlmutter, Nir Ziman, and Omer Keydar represented the Azrieli Foundation throughout the proceedings, which lasted about five years.
September 14, 2021
Guardianship Struggle over Eitan Biran – Everything You Need to Know about Writing a Will
In recent days, the guardianship struggle over Eitan Biran, the young boy whose parents and little brother were killed in a cable railway disaster in Italy, has made headlines again. This sensitive event has aroused interest around the question of writing a will at a young age. Adv. Liat Keisary addresses this issue of concern for many parents in an interview with Israel Hayom.
September 2, 2021
Class Actions: What Happens When the Alleged “Wrongdoing” Has Already Been Rectified?
Motions to certify class actions have long since become one of the most prevalent challenges facing private and public companies providing services to the public. Empirical studies show a gradual and nearly steady rise in the number of motions to certify class actions being filed since the Israeli Class Actions Law was enacted in 2006 and to date. If initially, a few dozen motions were filed annually, today, hundreds and even thousands of such motions are filed each year with the various courts, which imposes a heavy burden on the courts and on the parties being sued.
August 12, 2021
Indictments Filed in US for Fraudulent Receipt of Federal Financial Assistance from CARES Act
With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States government enacted the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The volume of assistance, totalling USD 2.8 trillion, provided financial aid to individuals and organizations facing economic hardship and access to loans with convenient terms for the purpose of paying salaries and other specific expenses under a program called the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Many Israeli companies operating in the United States also submitted applications for grants and loans under the PPP.
The initiative, while commendable, also opened the door for those seeking to exploit the government assistance to commit fraud and deceit.
August 2, 2021
Class Actions Against Israeli Public Companies for Failing to Meet Mandatory Accessibility Requirements
Dozens of motions were filed in recent weeks to certify class actions against some of the most well-known and leading publicly traded companies and reporting corporations in Israel. These motions to certify class actions are similar in nature (apart from the different defendants) and most were filed by the same plaintiffs-petitioners and through the same attorneys.
July 13, 2021
Implications of European Whistleblower Protection Directive on Israeli Companies
By October, companies in the European Union employing at least 50 employees will be required to operate an internal reporting system for reporting misconduct that may indicate compliance violations. Furthermore, all companies in the EU, regardless of size, will be required to ensure the protection of whistleblowers from all types of retaliation.
The EU Whistleblower Protection Directive originally came into force in October 2019. It gave EU member states two years to prepare to incorporate the directive into their national legislation. Prior to the enactment of the directive, no uniform binding legislation applied to all EU member states and only 10 member states had enacted national legislation in this regard. The upcoming inception of national whistleblower protection laws throughout the EU will naturally trigger a ripple effect.
July 6, 2021
Warning, Border Ahead? Expanding Israeli Courts’ Jurisdiction over Foreign Defendants
In early June 2021, the Tel Aviv-Yafo District Court handed down an important precedential ruling. The ruling expands the identity of an authorized agent, i.e., the entity to whom a statement of claim may be served and that thus subjects a foreign defendant to the jurisdiction of the Israeli court.