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Sophisticated
System and
Service
T
he Israeli legal market has undergone a robust expansion during the last 25 years,
and litigation has been no exception. As an increasing number of multinational
conglomerates have entered the Israeli market and established a business presence
(nearly 300 multinational companies currently operate R&D activity in Israel), and
while Israeli society and the economy have further matured, the practice of litigation
in Israel has had to adapt in order to meet international standards as well as to service
local demand and expectations. This change is particularly evident in terms of Israel’s
modern and sophisticated procedures as well as with respect to causes of action,
international litigation and consumer rights.
The Israeli Basic Law
The Judiciary (which is part of Israel's informal "Constitution"), provides for important
principles of civil procedure, such as the right to appeal as well as the public nature
of a trial. Our court system is adversarial and not inquisitorial. The judge’s role is to
determine the facts and apply the relevant law, not to investigate. Juries are not used
in the Israeli legal system. All questions of fact and law are determined by professional
judges. The statute of limitation period for civil claims in Israel is longer than in many
other jurisdictions and is generally seven years.
The adjudication process is governed by the principles of due process and guarantees
the basic right of any individual to be heard in court. The Rules of Civil Procedure
govern the conduct of litigation proceedings in the Israeli court system. There are no
pre-filing requirements and in some cases,mandatory mediation is applicable after the
filing of the action. A number of pre-trial discovery devices are provided for in order to
enable disclosure of information among the adverse parties including interrogatories
and disclosure and inspection of documents.
Most testimonies are filed in written form and the witnesses and experts of the
parties are then subject to live cross-examination before the court at scheduled
evidentiary hearings and in re-direct examination. The trial is usually not confined
to one concentrated period of time or consecutive days and typically consists of a
Unlike the U.S. system, however, there is no system for conducting pre-trial
depositions. Israeli litigation procedure differs from US and English style of
summary judgment so if a claim survives a motion to dismiss, it will proceed to
trial (unless settled).