Client updates

Payments to Employees Absent from Work Due to Mandatory Quarantine

November 30, 2020 / Netta Bromberg, Jacki Silbermann

A statutory amendment to the Economic Assistance Program Law (Novel Coronavirus) (Temporary Order) arranges payment for employees absent from work due to mandatory quarantine. The new arrangement stipulates that an employee entitled to sick pay from the first day of absence is also entitled to quarantine pay from the first day of absence.

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Categories: Employment

Regulation of Broker-Dealer Activity

November 24, 2020 / Ron Shuhatovich, Michal Koren

While the activity of most financial intermediaries in Israel is regulated and supervised, broker-dealers have so far operated in an unsupervised manner and without dedicated regulation. In light of this, the Israel Securities Authority has published a legislative memorandum aimed at regulating the field of broker-dealers in Israel.

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Categories: Regulation

Second Phase of Financial Assistance Grants for Third Sector Kicks Off

November 24, 2020 / Sagi Gross, Daniel Kleinman

Several days ago, the second phase of financial assistance grants for third-sector companies kicked off. Compared to the first phase, the size of a company's revenue for grant eligibility was expanded, as were the period of harm and the maximum assistance threshold.

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Categories: NPO | Tax Incentives and Grants

New Investment Products: Hedged Mutual Funds and Hedged Mutual Funds of Funds

November 18, 2020 / Ron Shuhatovich, Liat Feinberg Yanay

With the goal of expanding the public's investment options, the Israel Securities Authority published in February 2020 a first draft of a document for public comments on the core characteristics of two new financial products: alternative mutual funds of the hedge fund type and hedged mutual funds of funds.

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Categories: Capital Markets | Hedge Funds

Israel Securities Authority – What Constitutes Securities Fraud?

November 17, 2020 / Hadar Israeli, Eran Elharar

The Israel Securities Authority recently published a staff position on situations it believes indicate fraudulent securities trading and which justify opening a criminal investigation.

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Categories: Capital Markets | Enforcement

Haifa District Court: Repurchasing of Shares Is Not a Tax Event for Remaining Shareholders

November 17, 2020 / Harel Perlmutter

In a bold step, the Haifa District Court rejected the Israel Tax Authority’s position on a company’s repurchasing of shares, and in effect split with a ruling of the Tel Aviv District Court, who considered a similar issue several years ago.

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Categories: Tax

ISA: Expanding Disclosure on Independent Committees

November 15, 2020 / Hagit Ross, Tomer Barak Mizrahi

The Israel Securities Authority will soon require public companies to disclose details about independent committees tasked with overseeing transactions with controlling shareholders. The staff position was put together due to the increased need for supervision and oversight of decision-making processes in transactions between public companies and their controlling shareholders.

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Categories: Regulation

Privacy Protection Authority: Appointing a Privacy Protection Supervisor Is a Necessary Step for Israeli Companies

November 15, 2020 / Anat Even-Chen, Karin Kashi

Israel’s Privacy Protection Authority has published its recommendation that every organization appoint a privacy protection supervisor. This supervisor’s task is to implement the privacy protection laws that apply to the organization. The PPA noted that although Israeli law does not impose such a duty, it is a best practice recommended for organizations that collect and analyze personal data.

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Categories: Privacy Law | Privacy Law | Regulation

Crowdfunding Platforms – New Regulation in Europe

November 9, 2020 / Ron Shuhatovich

The European Parliament recently adopted a new regulation on crowdfunding platform activity. This regulation will apply across the board to all European Union countries. According to the new regulation's provisions, it is possible to raise up to only EUR 5 million on a crowdfunding platform. Additionally, the regulation stipulates rules to protect people investing through a crowdfunding platform, reporting duties for the entities raising funds, and more.

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Categories: Regulation

COVID-19 Does Not Justify a Breach of or Deviation from a Contract When Its Arrival in Israel Was Foreseeable

November 1, 2020 / Eldar Adato

An Israeli court recently rendered an interesting ruling on the impact of COVID-19. The case in question involved the lease agreement for the operation of a hotel. The lease agreement, executed in February 2020, provided payment of rental fees for the month of March, but payment for the months of April and May had not yet been arranged.

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Categories: Real Estate

An Urban Renewal Project Agreement Is Not Transferrable

October 29, 2020 / Eldar Adato

In urban renewal projects, residents or owner’s rights holders select the company with whom they are willing to embark upon this long journey, based on relationship of trust and competence. The trust required leads both parties to execute a binding agreement. Understandably, residents expect the company which whom they have contracted with to remain unchanged and not for those rights not to be transferred to other parties.

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Categories: Real Estate | Urban Renewal

Israeli Government Encourages Companies to Publish Corporate Responsibility Reports

October 27, 2020 / Anat Even-Chen

A recently launched government program aims to encourage companies to publish social responsibility reports, or ESG (environmental, social, and government) responsibility reports. The Ministry of Strategic Affairs in the Prime Minister's Office announced the launch of the “Impact Nation" program, as part of a broad move to promote publication of positive economic information regarding Israeli companies, following the publication of the Israeli companies database by UN Human Rights Council.

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Categories: Corporate

H&M Fined EUR 35 Million for Violating Employee Privacy in Germany

October 25, 2020 / Karin Kashi

In early October, the Data Protection Authority in Hamburg, Germany announced that the clothing retailer HM committed severe violations of its employees' privacy. Because of these European General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) violations, the retailer would pay a fine of approximately 35 million euros.

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Categories: Privacy Law | Regulation

Cayman Islands Removed from EU “Non-Cooperative Tax Jurisdiction” Blacklist

October 15, 2020 / Roy Engel

In late March 2020 we published a note regarding the de-facto “downgrade” of the Cayman Islands by the European Union’s Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) as a “non-cooperative jurisdiction” for tax purposes. This was regarded by the international investment community as a “blacklisting” of the Cayman Islands. We noted then that this blacklisting was “a technical result of the delay in the enactment of [certain Cayman Islands] laws, and therefore it is expected the EU will agree to return the Cayman Islands to its previous status and remove it from the list of the list of “non-cooperative jurisdictions” as early as by October 2020.” Indeed on October 6, 2020, ECOFIN removed the Cayman Islands from its “blacklist” of non-cooperative jurisdictions in tax matters.

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Employment: Paid Sick Leave for Time in Quarantine

October 2, 2020 / Netta Bromberg, Jacki Silbermann

Yesterday the Court granted the State’s request to extend the period during which employees may use paid sick leave for time in quarantine until October 28, 2020. As you may remember, the Supreme Court repealed an order from the Ministry of Health, according to which a sweeping medical certificate was given to employees in quarantine due to possible exposure to COVID-19. This repeal was to have entered into effect on September 30, 2020.

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Categories: Employment

Israel’s Second Lockdown: A Guide for Employers

September 30, 2020 / Netta Bromberg

The lockdown entered inְto effect on September 25, 2020, at 14:00, and is expected to continue until October 10, 2020. It is possible at the end of this period the lockdown will be extended. We have prepared an in-depth update for employers on the relevant topics.

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Categories: Employment

Updates Regarding the Upcoming Lockdown in Israel

September 17, 2020 / Netta Bromberg, Jacki Silbermann

A nationwide lockdown in Israel is to take effect on Friday, September 18, 2020, from 2 p.m., to last for at least 14 days, (the restrictions may be extended, in full or in part, as determined by the Israeli government). While the regulations are currently pending final approval by the Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, they are expected to be enacted late tonight or early tomorrow.

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Categories: Employment

Israel Securities Authority Publishes Sentencings Guidelines for Administrative Procedures

September 3, 2020 / Hadar Israeli, Eran Elharar

For the first time, the Israel Securities Authority has published Sentencing Guidelines for Administrative Procedures which contain the considerations guiding its determination of sanctions for individual violators and corporations in an administrative procedure.

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Categories: Capital Markets | Compliance

Employers Are Now Required to Publish Wage Gaps between Women and Men

August 30, 2020 / Netta Bromberg, Sigal Even Zur, Jacki Silbermann

According to a new amendment to the Male and Female Workers (Equal Pay) Law, employers must publish a yearly report outlining wage gaps between female and male employees. The amendment provides that certain employers must draft an internal yearly report detailing the average salary of their employees and the average wage gaps between men and women within each group of employees in the workplace.

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Categories: Employment

Not All Sexual Comments or Advances from a Supervisor Constitute Sexual Harassment

August 30, 2020 / Netta Bromberg, Sigal Even Zur, Jacki Silbermann

An important ruling regarding workplace authority figures and the prevention of sexual harassment in the workplace has established that one cannot automatically assume sexual comments or advances by an employee with managerial authority constitute sexual harassment. In this ruling, it appears, the National Labor Court has tempered to some extent widespread notions about sexual harassment by an authority figure.

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Categories: Employment

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