Glossary of Israeli legal terms: employment, consumer, defamation and contracts

What is in the glossary, and how do you use it?

The terms are arranged in the order of the Hebrew alphabet. Next to each term its area is shown, and at the end of the definition there is a link to the page on the site that explains the subject in more detail. You can jump to a letter in the row of letters above, or choose a term by area in the table.

The terms, in Hebrew alphabetical order (א to ת)

א

Enforcement (of a contract) · אכיפה (של חוזה) Contracts

Enforcement (of a contract) is a remedy in which the court orders the party in breach to perform the contract. The injured party is entitled to it, unless the contract cannot be performed, enforcement would mean compelling someone to do or accept personal work or a personal service, carrying out the order would require an unreasonable degree of supervision, or enforcement would be unjust in the circumstances (section 3 of the Contracts (Remedies for Breach of Contract) Law, 5731-1970 (חוק החוזים (תרופות בשל הפרת חוזה))).

Full explanation: Breach of contract in Israel: compensation, enforcement or rescission

Truth defense ("emet dibarti") · אמת דיברתי (הגנת אמת הפרסום) Defamation

The truth defense ("emet dibarti", truth of the publication) is a defense in a civil claim or a criminal proceeding over defamation: what was published was true, and there was a public interest in the publication; both conditions are required together (section 14 of the Prohibition of Defamation Law, 5725-1965 (חוק איסור לשון הרע)). The defense will not be denied only because the truth of a side detail that causes no real harm was not proved.

Full explanation: Sued for defamation? The warning letter, the defenses and the first steps

ב

Rescission of a contract (for breach) · ביטול חוזה (בשל הפרה) Contracts

Rescission of a contract (for breach) is a remedy of the party injured by a breach of contract: in a fundamental breach the injured party may rescind the contract (section 7(a) of the Contracts (Remedies for Breach of Contract) Law), and in a non-fundamental breach only after giving the party in breach extra time to perform and the contract was not performed within a reasonable time after that, unless rescission would be unjust in the circumstances (section 7(b)). Rescission is made by notice to the party in breach within a reasonable time (section 8), and after it each party returns to the other what it received under the contract, or pays its value when returning it is impossible or unreasonable or when the injured party chose this (section 9(a)).

Full explanation: Rescission of a contract: when it is allowed and how to do it properly

Regional Labor Court · בית דין אזורי לעבודה Employment

The Regional Labor Court is the court with exclusive jurisdiction over claims between an employee and an employer that arise from an employment relationship, including claims for wages, dismissal and pension contributions, and also over the question whether there was an employer-employee relationship at all, except for a claim based on the Torts Ordinance [New Version] (section 24(a)(1) of the Labor Court Law, 5729-1969 (חוק בית הדין לעבודה, התשכ״ט-1969)).

Full explanation: Proceedings in the Labor Court: a guide

Motion to certify a class action · בקשה לאישור תובענה ייצוגית Class actions

A motion to certify a class action is a written application asking the court to certify the claim as a class action, with the text of the claim attached (section 5(a)(1) of the Class Actions Law, 5766-2006 (חוק תובענות ייצוגיות)); until it is granted there is a motion, and there is not yet a certified class. The court may grant it if it finds, among other things, that the claim raises substantial questions of fact or law common to all the class members and there is a reasonable possibility that they will be decided in the class's favor, and that this is the efficient and fair way to decide the dispute (section 8(a)).

Full explanation: Served with a motion to certify a class action: the first days and the defense

ג

Overtime pay · גמול שעות נוספות Employment

Overtime pay is the payment for overtime hours: for the first two overtime hours in a day, at least 125% of the regular wage, and for each overtime hour after them, at least 150% (section 16(a) of the Hours of Work and Rest Law, 5711-1951 (חוק שעות עבודה ומנוחה, התשי״א-1951)); the Law does not apply to certain employees, for example in management positions or in positions that require a special degree of personal trust (section 30(a)). A wage set as including payment for overtime is treated as a regular wage only, unless otherwise provided in a collective agreement approved for this purpose by the Minister of Labor (section 5 of the Wage Protection Law, 5718-1958).

Full explanation: Overtime: calculation, rights and common pitfalls

Final settlement of accounts · גמר חשבון Employment

The final settlement of accounts is the full set of payments that are checked when the employment relationship ends: the wage up to the last working day, which is paid on the date it would have been paid had the employee continued working (section 12 of the Wage Protection Law); advance notice according to length of service, or the regular wage in its place (sections 3, 4 and 7 of the Advance Notice of Dismissal and Resignation Law, 5761-2001 (חוק הודעה מוקדמת לפיטורים ולהתפטרות)); severance pay for those entitled to it (sections 1 and 12 of the Severance Pay Law, 5723-1963 (חוק פיצויי פיטורים)); payment for unused leave (vacation redemption) (section 13 of the Annual Leave Law, 5711-1951); and, depending on the case, also recuperation pay (dmei havra'a) and pension contributions up to the end date.

Full explanation: I was dismissed: what am I entitled to? Final settlement of accounts and a checklist

ד

Advertising message (the “Spam Law”) · דבר פרסומת (״חוק הספאם״) Consumer

An advertising message (under the “Spam Law”) is, among other things, a message distributed commercially whose purpose is to encourage buying a product or a service or spending money in another way, and also a message distributed to the general public whose purpose is to ask for a donation or for propaganda (section 30A(a) of the Communications (Telecommunications and Broadcasting) Law, 5742-1982). As a rule, an advertiser may not send an advertising message by fax, by an automatic dialing system, by electronic message or by text message without the recipient's prior explicit consent, in writing, including by electronic message or in a recorded call (section 30A(b)); the Law sets exceptions, for example under the conditions in section 30A(c) for someone who gave their details during a purchase.

Full explanation: The Spam Law: compensation without proof of damage for each message in a personal claim, and what is possible in a class action

Cancellation fee · דמי ביטול Consumer

A cancellation fee is an amount that a business charges a consumer because of the cancellation of a transaction, including shipping or packing costs it claims to have incurred (section 14E(d) of the Consumer Protection Law). When a consumer cancels a distance sale not because of a defect or a breach, the business may charge a cancellation fee of no more than 5% of the price of the item or service or NIS 100, whichever is lower (section 14E(b)(1)). When the cancellation results from a defect, from a mismatch with the details given, from failure to deliver on time or from another breach by the business, no cancellation fee at all may be charged (section 14E(a)(1)).

Full explanation: The period for cancellation of a transaction: when and how

ה

Good-faith defense (section 15) · הגנת תום הלב (סעיף 15) Defamation

The good-faith defense (section 15) is a defense for someone who made the publication in good faith in one of the circumstances listed in section 15 of the Prohibition of Defamation Law, for example when the relationship between them and the person to whom the publication was addressed placed on them a legal, moral or social duty to publish, or when the publication was made to protect a legitimate personal interest. Someone who proved such a circumstance, and that the publication did not go beyond what is reasonable, benefits from a presumption of good faith (section 16(a)); an opposite presumption applies, for example, when the statement was not true and the publisher did not take reasonable steps before publication to check whether it was true (section 16(b)(2)).

Full explanation: A defamation claim: how much is awarded for harm to your good name, and what must be proved

Advance notice · הודעה מוקדמת Employment

Advance notice is a written notice that an employer who wants to dismiss an employee, or an employee who wants to resign, must as a rule give to the other side, stating the day the notice is given and the day the dismissal or resignation takes effect (section 2 of the Advance Notice of Dismissal and Resignation Law, 5761-2001; exceptions in section 10). Its length depends on length of service: for a monthly-salaried employee, after the first year of work, one month (section 3), and for an hourly employee, one month only after the third year of work (section 4).

Full explanation: The advance notice period: the parties' obligations

Notice of employment terms · הודעה על תנאי עבודה Employment

The notice of employment terms is a written notice that an employer must give an employee, setting out their terms of employment, no later than 30 days from the day the employee started work, and for a minor (young worker) no later than seven days (section 1 of the Notice to Employee and Job Candidate (Terms of Employment and Screening and Hiring Procedures) Law, 5762-2002 (חוק הודעה לעובד ולמועמד לעבודה (תנאי עבודה והליכי מיון וקבלה לעבודה), התשס״ב-2002)). A written employment contract that includes all the details the Law lists, and is given on time, meets the duty (section 2(d)). Failure to give the notice is an offense (section 4), and in a dispute over a matter that should have appeared in a notice that was not given, the burden of proof is on the employer, provided that the employee testified to their claim (section 5A).

Full explanation: Employment contract: what must be in writing and how to check it

Cancellation notice · הודעת ביטול Consumer

A cancellation notice is a notice in which a consumer cancels a transaction. The business must allow it to be given orally (by phone or at the place of business, unless it was agreed that cancellation will be in writing), by registered mail, by email, by fax if the business has one, and online in a transaction that can be made online (section 14I(a) of the Consumer Protection Law); the notice states the consumer's name and ID number (section 14I(c)).

Full explanation: Subscription cancellation: a full checklist + a cancellation notice template

Defamation (libel) · הוצאת דיבה Defamation

“Hotza'at diba” (usually rendered as libel or slander) is a common expression for publishing defamation; in the Prohibition of Defamation Law, 5725-1965, the legal term is “lashon hara” (defamation): a matter whose publication may, among other things, humiliate a person in the eyes of others or harm them in their position, business, occupation or profession (section 1). Publishing defamation to one or more persons other than the injured party is a civil wrong (section 7), and publishing it to two or more persons other than the injured party, with intent to harm, is also an offense punishable by one year's imprisonment (section 6).

Full explanation: Defamation on the internet and online libel: removal, finding the publisher and compensation

Standing order (direct debit authorization) · הוראת קבע (הרשאה לחיוב) Consumer

A standing order (direct debit) is what the law calls a “debit authorization”: an authorization the payer gives to their payment service provider, for example the bank that manages their account, to make a payment transaction from their payment account or by means of their payment instrument, at the payee's request and subject to the conditions set in the authorization (section 1 of the Payment Services Law, 5779-2019 (חוק שירותי תשלום, התשע״ט-2019)). The payer may cancel it at any time, by notice to the payment service provider or to the business that is the payee (section 34(a)); canceling the authorization stops the collection, but it is not a cancellation notice to the business about the transaction itself.

Full explanation: Standing order charges after a subscription cancellation: canceling the authorization at the bank, and the refund

Misleading (consumer deception) · הטעיה (צרכנית) Consumer

Misleading (consumer deception) is any act or omission of a business, in writing, orally or in any other way, even after the contract was made, that may mislead a consumer on a material matter in the transaction, for example the regular or usual price or the cancellation terms (section 2(a) of the Consumer Protection Law). The prohibition also applies to advertising (section 2(c)).

Full explanation: Misleading advertising: what the law says

Employment permit for a foreign worker · היתר להעסקת עובד זר Employment

An employment permit for a foreign worker is a written permit from the commissioner at the Ministry of Interior, or from a Ministry of Interior employee on the commissioner's behalf, to employ a foreign worker with a specific employer and according to the terms of the permit; the permit may be for a quota of foreign workers or by a list of names (section 1M(a) of the Foreign Workers Law, 5751-1991 (חוק עובדים זרים, התשנ״א-1991)). A “foreign worker” is a worker who is not an Israeli citizen or resident (section 1). Employing a foreign worker contrary to section 1M is an offense (section 2(a)(2)), and the employer must also make a written employment contract with the worker, in a language the worker understands (section 1C(a)).

Full explanation: Employing foreign workers: the permit, the employer’s duties and the sanctions

Late payment of wages (withheld wages) · הלנת שכר (שכר מולן) Employment

“Delayed wages” (late payment of wages) are wages that were not paid by the “determining day”, the ninth day after the date they were due (section 1 of the Wage Protection Law, 5718-1958). Such wages carry “compensation for late payment of wages”, which is the higher of two amounts: 5% for the first week after the due date plus 10% for each week or part of a week after that; or linkage differentials plus 20% per month (section 17(a)), and the Regional Labor Court may reduce or cancel it in the circumstances set out in section 18.

Full explanation: Late salary in Israel: when and how to sue the employer

Settlement agreement in a class action · הסדר פשרה בתובענה ייצוגית Class actions

A settlement agreement in a class action is an agreement to resolve a dispute in which a motion to certify a class action was filed or a class action was certified; it can be made only with the court's approval (section 18(a) of the Class Actions Law). The court approves it only if it finds that it is appropriate, fair and reasonable, taking into account the interests of the class members (section 19(a)), and as a rule after receiving the opinion of an examiner it appointed (section 19(b)).

Full explanation: Settlement in a class action: what you need to know

Withdrawal (in a class action) · הסתלקות (בתובענה ייצוגית) Class actions

Withdrawal (in a class action) is the withdrawal of an applicant, a representative plaintiff or representative counsel from a certification motion or from a class action. Withdrawal requires the court's approval, and so does any benefit from the defendant or from another person in connection with it (section 16(a) of the Class Actions Law), and it does not affect the continuation of the proceeding by another applicant or representative plaintiff (section 16(c)).

Full explanation: Served with a motion to certify a class action: the first days and the defense

Fundamental breach · הפרה יסודית Contracts

A fundamental breach is a breach about which it can be assumed that a reasonable person would not have made the same contract had they foreseen the breach and its results, or a breach that the contract states will be considered fundamental (section 6 of the Contracts (Remedies for Breach of Contract) Law, 5731-1970). A sweeping clause that makes all breaches fundamental without distinguishing between them is valid only if it was reasonable when the contract was made.

Full explanation: Breach of contract in Israel: compensation, enforcement or rescission

Limitation period · התיישנות Procedure

The limitation period is the time limit within which a claim can be filed: as a rule, a claim that is not about land becomes time-barred seven years after the day the cause of action arose (sections 5(1) and 6 of the Prescription Law, 5718-1958 (חוק ההתיישנות, התשי״ח-1958)), unless a specific law sets a different period; the Law postpones the start of the period or suspends it in certain situations, for example when the facts were hidden from the plaintiff for reasons beyond their control (section 8) or when the plaintiff is a minor (section 10). A defendant who raises the limitation period blocks the hearing of the claim, but the limitation period alone does not cancel the right itself (section 2).

Full explanation: Limitation period for wage and employment claims: what becomes time-barred and when

Resignation deemed dismissal · התפטרות בדין מפוטר Employment

“Resignation deemed dismissal” is the usual name for situations in which the law treats a resignation as a dismissal, and the employee is then entitled to severance pay as if dismissed; the phrase itself does not appear in the law. The broadest of these situations is resignation because of a material deterioration in working conditions, or because of other circumstances in which the employee cannot be expected to continue working (section 11(a) of the Severance Pay Law).

Full explanation: Resignation deemed dismissal: when severance pay is due even when you resign

ח

Standard-form contract · חוזה אחיד Contracts

A standard-form contract is the text of a contract whose terms, all or some of them, were set in advance by one party so that they serve as terms for many contracts between it and people who are not specified in number or identity (section 2 of the Standard Contracts Law, 5743-1982 (חוק החוזים האחידים, התשמ״ג-1982)). A clause that a supplier and a customer specially agreed on for a particular contract is not a “term” for the purposes of the Law.

Full explanation: Standard contracts: consumer protection and unfair terms

Automatic renewal · חידוש אוטומטי Consumer

Automatic renewal is a term under which a transaction for a fixed period continues after its end date. Such a term has no effect, and the contract is treated as ending on that date, except in the exceptions in section 13A(d) (section 13A(c)(1) of the Consumer Protection Law). An extension requires the consumer's consent, and the burden of proving the consent is on the business (section 13A(e)).

Full explanation: Automatic renewal of a subscription: what the law requires of the business

Unauthorized charge (payment transaction with a missing document) · חיוב לא מורשה (פעולת תשלום במסמך חסר) Consumer

An unauthorized charge is a charge by a payment transaction for which there is no document signed by the payer, and no record documenting the verification of their identity, in particular strong authentication, and their consent (a “payment transaction with a missing document”, section 29(a) of the Payment Services Law). A payer who notified the payment service provider, within 30 days from the day they received notice of the charge, that they did not make the transaction or that the amount was increased without authorization, is entitled to a refund within eight business days (section 29(b)); the provider may charge again only under the conditions in sections 27(b) and 28(b).

Full explanation: Unauthorized charge on a credit card: a guide to getting a refund

י

Opting out of the class · יציאה מהקבוצה Class actions

Opting out of the class is a notice to the court by a member of the class that they do not want to be included in a certified class action. As a rule, after the court certified a class action, anyone who belongs to the class it defined is considered to have agreed that the claim be filed on their behalf, unless they notified the court that they do not want to be included in it within 45 days from the day the certification decision was published, or by a later date set by the court (section 11(a) of the Class Actions Law); in special circumstances the court may decide that the class will include only those who gave notice that they are joining (section 12). The judgment in the claim is res judicata for the class members on whose behalf it was conducted, unless the law provides otherwise (section 24).

Full explanation: How to file a class action in Israel: conditions, steps and a self-check

ל

Defamation Defamation

Defamation is a matter whose publication may humiliate a person in the eyes of others or make them a target of hatred, contempt or ridicule, degrade them for acts, conduct or qualities attributed to them, harm them in their position, business, occupation or profession, or degrade them because of their race, origin, religion, place of residence, age, sex, sexual orientation or disability; a “person” for this purpose is an individual or a corporation (section 1 of the Prohibition of Defamation Law, 5725-1965). Publishing defamation to one or more persons other than the injured party is a civil wrong (section 7).

Full explanation: Defamation lawyer and protecting your reputation

מ

Warning letter · מכתב התראה Procedure

A warning letter, also called a letter of demand, is a letter that records what happened, what is demanded and by when, and it is usually sent before a claim. As a rule there is no duty to send it, because a court proceeding is opened by filing a statement of claim (regulation 9(a) of the Civil Procedure Regulations, 5779-2018 (תקנות סדר הדין האזרחי, התשע״ט-2018)), but some laws attach a legal result to a written request, for example the written request that comes before a claim for exemplary damages (section 31A(b) of the Consumer Protection Law).

Full explanation: A warning letter before legal action: what it should include and what not

ס

Trade secret · סוד מסחרי Contracts

A trade secret is business information of any kind that is not public knowledge and cannot easily be discovered lawfully by others, whose secrecy gives its owner a business advantage over competitors, provided that the owner takes reasonable measures to keep it secret (section 5 of the Commercial Torts Law, 5759-1999). Using the secret without its owner's consent, in breach of a contractual obligation, for example under a confidentiality agreement, or in breach of a duty of trust, is misappropriation of a trade secret (section 6(b)(2)), and the court may award compensation for it without proof of damage of up to NIS 100,000 for each tort (section 13(a)).

Full explanation: Trade secrets: protection and enforcement in Israel

Section 14 (pension arrangement in lieu of severance pay) · סעיף 14 (הסדר פנסיה במקום פיצויים) Employment

Section 14 is an arrangement in which the employer's payments to a provident fund, a pension fund or a similar fund come in place of severance pay; it applies only if it is set in the collective agreement that applies to the parties or approved by the Minister of Labor, and only to the extent set or approved (section 14 of the Severance Pay Law). Under the general approval, the arrangement does not reduce the right to severance pay for wages above the wage from which the payments were made (paragraph (3) of the General Approval regarding Employers' Payments to a Pension Fund and an Insurance Fund in lieu of Severance Pay).

Full explanation: Severance pay calculator: seniority, wages and Section 14

ע

Monthly-salaried employee and hourly employee · עובד במשכורת ועובד בשכר Employment

A “monthly-salaried employee” is an employee whose pay for work is mainly paid on the basis of a month or a longer period, and an “hourly employee” (paid by wage) is any employee who is not a monthly-salaried employee (section 12(a) of the Severance Pay Law). The Advance Notice of Dismissal and Resignation Law adopts these definitions (section 1), and sets a separate notice period for each type (sections 3 and 4).

Full explanation: The advance notice period: the parties' obligations

Continuing transaction · עסקה מתמשכת Consumer

A continuing transaction is a transaction to buy goods or services on an ongoing basis, for a fixed or unlimited period, including a change to the transaction or an addition to it that is not a new transaction, for example a subscription, but not the supply of gas to a gas consumer (section 13C(a) of the Consumer Protection Law, 5741-1981). When the consumer gives a cancellation notice, the contract ends within 3 business days, or within 6 business days from the day it was handed in for sending by registered mail, if the consumer did not state a later date in it, and from that date the consumer may not be charged for anything provided after it (section 13D(c); exception in section 13D(d)).

Full explanation: Subscription cancellation under the Consumer Protection Law

Distance sale · עסקת מכר מרחוק Consumer

A distance sale is a transaction for the sale of an item or the provision of a service following distance marketing, without the parties being present together, for example online or by phone (section 14C(f) of the Consumer Protection Law). For an item, it can be canceled from the day of the transaction until 14 days from receiving the item or from receiving the document with the transaction details, whichever is later, and for a service within 14 days from the day of the transaction or from receiving the document, whichever is later, subject to the conditions and exceptions in the law (section 14C(c)–(d)).

Full explanation: The period for cancellation of a transaction: when and how

Guarantee (bank guarantee) · ערבות (ערבות בנקאית) Contracts

A guarantee is an undertaking by a person to fulfill an obligation of another person toward a third person, for all or part of the obligation, existing or future (section 1 of the Guarantee Law, 5727-1967 (חוק הערבות, התשכ״ז-1967)); in a bank guarantee the guarantor is the bank. The guarantor and the debtor are jointly and severally liable to the creditor, but as a rule the creditor may not demand payment from the guarantor before first demanding it from the debtor, unless the guarantor waived this or another circumstance in section 8 applies. In a bank guarantee, the conditions for calling it, including whether the bank pays on the beneficiary's demand, are set in the guarantee document.

Full explanation: Bank guarantee: what it is, what types there are and how to get one

פ

Compensation without proof of damage (defamation) · פיצוי ללא הוכחת נזק (לשון הרע) Defamation

Compensation without proof of damage is compensation that the court may award to the injured party in a civil defamation claim without them proving damage, up to the amount in section 7A(b) of the Prohibition of Defamation Law, and up to double that amount when it is proved that the publication was made with intent to harm (section 7A(c)). The amounts are updated on the 16th of each month according to the consumer price index (section 7A(e)), and such compensation may not be received more than once for the same defamation (section 7A(d)).

Full explanation: A defamation claim: how much is awarded for harm to your good name, and what must be proved

Liquidated damages · פיצוי מוסכם Contracts

Liquidated damages are an amount of compensation that the parties agreed on in advance; the compensation will be as agreed, without proof of damage, but the court may reduce it if it was set without any reasonable relation to the damage that could have been foreseen, when the contract was made, as a likely result of the breach (section 15(a) of the Contracts (Remedies for Breach of Contract) Law).

Full explanation: Liquidated damages clauses: validity and enforcement

Severance pay · פיצויי פיטורים Employment

Severance pay is a payment that a dismissed employee is entitled to receive from their employer: for a monthly-salaried employee, one month's wage for each year of employment, with part of a year giving a proportional entitlement (section 12 of the Severance Pay Law, 5723-1963). As a rule, the right arises for someone who worked one year continuously for one employer or at one workplace and was dismissed (section 1(a)).

Full explanation: Severance pay calculator: seniority, wages and Section 14

Exemplary damages · פיצויים לדוגמה Consumer

Exemplary damages are damages that the court may award without the plaintiff proving damage, in cases that the law lists explicitly: for example, when a business kept charging a consumer after a cancellation notice for a continuing transaction (section 31A(a)(2b) of the Consumer Protection Law), or when an advertising message was sent knowingly in breach of the law (section 30A(j) of the Communications (Telecommunications and Broadcasting) Law, 5742-1982). Under the Consumer Protection Law, a written request must be sent to the business before the claim, and for a charge after cancellation the cancellation notice itself is enough, if it was not given orally (section 31A(b)).

Full explanation: Charged after a subscription cancellation? 5 steps to a refund

Publication (for defamation purposes) · פרסום (לעניין לשון הרע) Defamation

Publication (for defamation purposes) is the communication of a matter orally, in writing or in print, including a drawing, image, movement, sound and any other means (section 2(a) of the Prohibition of Defamation Law). Publication of defamation includes, among other things, a matter that was intended for a person other than the injured party and reached them or another person other than the injured party, or a written matter that could, in the circumstances, have reached a person other than the injured party (section 2(b)).

Full explanation: Defamation on the internet and online libel: removal, finding the publisher and compensation

Privileged publication · פרסום מותר Defamation

A privileged publication is a publication that cannot be the basis of any criminal or civil proceeding at all, with no need to prove truth or good faith. Section 13 of the Prohibition of Defamation Law lists the cases, including a publication by a party, their counsel or a witness during a hearing before a judge, an arbitrator or another person with judicial or quasi-judicial authority under law (section 13(5)), and a correct and fair report of what was said or happened in a public session of such a hearing, if the publication was not prohibited (section 13(7)).

Full explanation: Sued for defamation? The warning letter, the defenses and the first steps

ש

Pre-dismissal hearing · שימוע לפני פיטורים Employment

A pre-dismissal hearing is a procedure in which the employer presents the claims against the employee in advance, allows them to respond, and considers the answer with an open mind, before the decision to dismiss and not after it. The duty to hold a hearing is not set in statute but in the case law of the National Labor Court.

Full explanation: Pre-dismissal hearing: what must happen and when

Minimum wage · שכר מינימום Employment

Minimum wage is the wage that an employee aged 18 or over, employed in a full-time position, is entitled to at the least, per month, per day or per hour, and proportionally in a part-time position (section 2 of the Minimum Wage Law, 5747-1987). The Minister publishes the updated minimum wage in Reshumot (the official gazette) as of 1 April of each year (section 6), and the right “cannot be made conditional or waived” (section 12).

Full explanation: Minimum wage in Israel: updates, calculation and rights

Determining wage (for severance pay) · שכר קובע (לפיצויי פיטורים) Employment

The determining wage (for severance pay) is the wage on which severance pay is calculated: as a rule, the employee's wage just before the dismissal (the “last wage”), for the period after 1 January 1964 (regulations 2 and 4 of the Severance Pay Regulations (Calculation of Severance Pay and Resignation Deemed Dismissal), 5724-1964 (תקנות פיצויי פיטורים (חישוב הפיצויים, והתפטרות שרואים אותה כפיטורים), תשכ״ד-1964)). The components taken into account are the basic wage (a departmental or professional supplement counts as part of it), a seniority supplement, a cost-of-living supplement and a family supplement (regulation 1(a)–(b)).

Full explanation: Severance pay calculator: seniority, wages and Section 14

ת

Small claim · תביעה קטנה Procedure

A small claim is a civil claim that an individual files in a Small Claims Court, for payment of an amount not exceeding the amount in section 60(a)(1) of the Courts Law [Consolidated Version], 5744-1984, or for replacing a product, repairing it or cancellation of a transaction of such value (section 60(a)(2)). Representation by a lawyer is allowed there only with the court's permission and for special reasons that will be recorded (section 63(a)).

Full explanation: Small Claims Court: a practical guide

Class action · תובענה ייצוגית Class actions

A class action is a claim conducted on behalf of a group of people who did not authorize the representative plaintiff to do so, and which raises substantial questions of fact or law common to all the class members (section 2 of the Class Actions Law, 5766-2006). It can be filed only in a claim listed in the Second Schedule to the Law or in a matter set by an explicit statutory provision, and filing it requires the court's approval (section 3).

Full explanation: Class action and consumer claims lawyer

Good faith in contracts · תום לב בחוזים Contracts

Good faith in contracts is the duty to act in an accepted manner and in good faith, both in negotiations toward making a contract (section 12(a) of the Contracts (General Part) Law, 5733-1973 (חוק החוזים (חלק כללי), התשל״ג-1973)) and in fulfilling an obligation arising from a contract and in exercising a right arising from it (section 39). A party that did not act this way in the negotiations owes the other party compensation for the damage caused to it because of the negotiations or because the contract was made (section 12(b)).

Full explanation: The duty of good faith in contracts: principles and case law

Payslip · תלוש שכר Employment

A payslip is a record from the payroll register that sets out the details of the wage paid to the employee; the employer must, as a rule, give it to every employee, in writing, no later than the “determining day”, and include in it the details listed in the Schedule to the Law (section 24 of the Wage Protection Law; as a rule, the duty does not apply to an individual who employs an employee outside their business or occupation, section 24(d)). An employer who did not give a payslip on time, or gave a payslip missing wage details, commits an offense (section 25B(a)).

Full explanation: Payslip: what must appear on it and how to read it

Unfair (oppressive) term · תנאי מקפח Contracts

An unfair term is a term in a standard-form contract that, taking into account all the terms of the contract and other circumstances, is unfair to customers or gives the supplier an unfair advantage that may lead to unfairness to customers; a court and the Standard Contracts Tribunal cancel it or change it (section 3 of the Standard Contracts Law). Section 4 lists terms that are presumed to be unfair, such as a term that exempts the supplier, fully or partly, from liability that would apply to it under law.

Full explanation: Standard contracts: consumer protection and unfair terms

Sources

The definitions rely on the text of the laws and regulations. The links lead to the original text (in Hebrew); the binding text is the one published in Reshumot (the official gazette).

• Severance Pay Law, 5723-1963
• Severance Pay Regulations (Calculation of Severance Pay and Resignation Deemed Dismissal), 5724-1964
• General Approval regarding Employers' Payments to a Pension Fund and an Insurance Fund in lieu of Severance Pay
• Wage Protection Law, 5718-1958
• Advance Notice of Dismissal and Resignation Law, 5761-2001
• Annual Leave Law, 5711-1951
• Minimum Wage Law, 5747-1987
• Hours of Work and Rest Law, 5711-1951
• Labor Court Law, 5729-1969
• Consumer Protection Law, 5741-1981
• Payment Services Law, 5779-2019
• Communications (Telecommunications and Broadcasting) Law, 5742-1982
• Class Actions Law, 5766-2006
• Prohibition of Defamation Law, 5725-1965
• Standard Contracts Law, 5743-1982
• Contracts (Remedies for Breach of Contract) Law, 5731-1970
• Contracts (General Part) Law, 5733-1973
• Prescription Law, 5718-1958
• Courts Law [Consolidated Version], 5744-1984
• Civil Procedure Regulations, 5779-2018
• Notice to Employee and Job Candidate (Terms of Employment and Screening and Hiring Procedures) Law, 5762-2002
• Foreign Workers Law, 5751-1991
• Commercial Torts Law, 5759-1999
• Guarantee Law, 5727-1967

For the sections that the site discusses in each law, with links to the guides, see the legislation index.

The glossary explains terms in general; a short definition does not cover the whole law, and what applies to a particular case depends on its facts. What is said on this page is general information and is not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship.