Several years of epidemiological, medical and legal research have matured into a huge lawsuit, in which the cancer patients, represented by the Citizens Association for the Environment, will face 30 polluting factories. The purpose of the lawsuit is to create for the first time a legal recognition of the connection between pollution and mortality and morbidity and to create an equation of the polluter paying and compensating the sick and the families of the deceased.
The discussions will take place in room 607 and there will be another room that will be available to the public where the discussion will be projected on screens [room 609]. The first hearing will begin on Tuesday, 13/2/23, at 09:00.
Before the hearing, we had a conversation with the lawyer Assaf Fink
Attorney Assaf Fink is one of Israel's leading experts in class action lawsuits. Fink is leading the lawsuit alongside Dr. Eran Tzin, from the Tel Aviv University Faculty of Law clinic, Dr. Omer Peled from Bar Ilan University and attorneys Gil Ron, Hamed Suad and Sapir Chai Zarihan , from the office of Gil Ron Keenan.
Adv. Assaf Fink tells about the course of the lawsuit:
On Tuesday, 14/2/23, a series of 55 days of hearings will begin, with Judge Ron Sokol, Vice President of the District Court in Haifa.
The lawsuit is representative and within it the Citizens Association for the Environment represents the patients with lung cancer and NHL (thousands of patients). The defendants are the 30 most polluting factories in the Haifa and Kiryat region.
In the lawsuit, we request that for the first time the court recognize the causal link between the severe air pollution, for decades, and excess morbidity and mortality from cancer in the Haifa area.
As much as this connection sounds clear to anyone with an understanding, to this day no clear judicial decision has been given on this matter.
5 expert opinions from the top in Israel and the world were submitted in the field of toxicology, epidemiology, air pollution and cancer. The opinions clearly show the causal relationship.
Now both the experts on behalf of the plaintiffs and the experts of the thirty factories and the officials on their behalf will testify. The court and the public will be able to get a clear impression of the serious failures of these enterprises for decades.
Question: Is the regulator a target?
Attorney Fink: In a class action, it is not possible, according to the law, to sue for lack of supervision. This fact turns the representative plaintiffs into civil enforcers, against the air pollution and the polluting factories.
The plaintiffs seek to bring financial compensation to the patients and the families of the deceased and to create a deterrent that will create a new equation - the polluter pays. We hope that in the future it would be better for the factories to invest the funds in advance, in preventing pollution and upgrading their facilities, in a way that would prevent the pollution and the human tragedy, in the first place.
The discussions are open to the public. This is a public law, of great interest. Every citizen may come to the district court, watch the hearings, in the hall of the Honorable Judge Sokol and follow the updates on the Hai Pa website.
Later we will publish here the list of those questioned in each discussion.
The association is raising public money in order to finance the opinions of the experts and the flight of the English expert, who will come to testify in the coming weeks.
The list of the defendant factories:
- Alcon Recycling Center (2003) Ltd, by Attorney Hagit Bleiberg, Idit Reiter and Elad Sharabi, from the office of Goldfarb, Seligman & Co., from 98 Yigal Alon St., Tel Aviv 6789141.
- Bitum Ltd
- Bitum Petrochemical Industries Ltd, by Attorney Daniel Abarbanal and Shaghi Schiff, from the office of Yigal Arnon & Co., Azrieli Center 1, Tel Aviv 6702101
- Haifa Oil Refineries Ltd, by Amos Goren, Nadav Weissman, Lior Reichert and Maor Lieberman, from Mitar Law Firm, Liquornik, Geva, Leshem, Tal & Co.
- Gadot Biochemistry Industries Ltd, by Attorney Arie Neiger, Yehal Porat and Mor Boganim, from the office of Agmon & Co., Rosenberg HaCohen & Co., 98 Yigal Alon St., Tel Aviv 6789141
- Gadot Mesopim Lakhkimil (1985) Ltd
- Gadot Storage and Transportation Limited Partnership Ltd
- Gadot Michicals and Reservoirs for Chemicals Ltd. (deleted), by Attorneys at Law Ruth Dagan and Moshe Yaakov, from Herzog, Fox, Naman & Co., 6 Yitzhak Sde Street, Tel-Aviv 6777506 and by Avi Cordova, from Grossman, Cordova, Gilad & Co., from Derech HaShalom 53, Givataim 5345433
- Gadiv Petrochemical Industries Ltd, by Amos Goren, Nadav Wiseman, Lior Reichert and Maor Lieberman.
- Dur Chemicals Ltd.
- Delek The Israeli Fuel Company Ltd, by Attorney General Galit Fleischer, Uri Shurk and Asur Weizman, from Agmon & Co., Rosenberg HaCohen & Co., 98 Yigal Alon St., Tel Aviv 6789141
- Dr. Miron Chemical Factory Ltd, by Attorney General Avi Elrom and Assaf Elrom, from Elrom, Rom, Salomon & Co., 25 Afel St., Kiryat Aryeh, Petah Tikva 4951125
- Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd, by Attorney General Arie Neiger, Yahal Porat and Mor Boganim and by Attorney General Galit Fleischer, Uri Shurk and Asur Weizman.
- Israel Electric Company Ltd, by Yoran Gil and Yuval Shamir, from the office of Yigal Arnon & Co., Azrieli Center 1, Tel Aviv 6702101
- Haifa Port Company Ltd, by Attorney General Aryeh Neiger, Yehal Porat and Mor Boganim.
- Israel Ports Development and Properties Ltd, by Attorney General Ruth Dagan and Moshe Yaakov.
- Israel Shipyards Ltd, by Dr. Tzipi Iser Itzik, Shai Tamar and Avihai Assulin, from the office of Lipa Meir & Co., lawyers, from 2 Weizman Street (Beit Amot Investments), Tel Aviv 6423902
- Had Asaf Industries Ltd, by Attorney General Arie Neiger, Yahal Porat and Mor Boganim, and by Attorney General Galit Fleischer, Uri Shurk and Asur Weizman.
- Sonol Israel Ltd, by Shai Tsadik and Eric Kaufman, from the office of Fisher Bacher Chen Wall Orion & Co., Medrach Begin 146, Tel-Aviv 6492103
- Haifa Chemicals Ltd, by Attorney Gil Atar, Shai Cohen, Didi Gerstenfeld and Bar Granit, from the office of Nashitz Brands Amir & Co., 5 Toval Street, Tel Aviv 6789717
- Carmel Olefins Ltd, by Attorney General Amos Goren, Nadav Wiseman, Lior Reichert and Maor Lieberman.
- Port of Israel Shipyards Ltd, by Dr. Tzipi Iser Itzik, Shai Tamar and Avihai Assulin.
- Nesher Israeli cement factories Ltd, by attorney Eyal Rozovsky, Sion Ramot, Merav Ben-Artzi Halpern and Jamie Severin, from Mitar Law Firm, Liqvarnik, Geva, Leshem, Tal & Co., from Derech Abba Hillel Silver 16, Ramat Gan 5250608
- Paz Oil Company Ltd.
- 25. Paz Oils and Chemicals Ltd, by Hagi Doron, Panina Shafer Emanuel, Uriel Prince and Adi Shlomo, from the office of Sh. Horowitz & Co., 31 Ahad Ha'am St., Tel Aviv 6520204
- Frutarom Ltd, by Attorney General Aryeh Neiger, Yehal Porat and Mor Boganim.
- Haifa Basic Oils Ltd. (deleted).
- Shemen Industries Ltd, by Attorney General Aryeh Neiger, Yehal Porat and Mor Boganim.
- Taro Pharmaceutical Industry Ltd, by Attorney General Ruth Dagan and Khan Tirosh.
- Oil and Energy Infrastructures Ltd, by Attorney General Aryeh Neiger, Yehal Porat and Mor Boganim
The dates of the hearings and the questioning of the witnesses:
Tuesday 14.2, Thursday 16.2, Monday 20.2, Wednesday 22.2, Sunday 26.2, Tuesday 28.2, Thursday 2.3, Monday 6.3, Wednesday 8.3, Sunday 12.3, Tuesday 14.3, Thursday 16.3, Monday 20.3, Wednesday 22.3, Sunday 26.3, Tuesday 28.3, Thursday 30.3 , Monday 3.4, Sunday 16.4, Tuesday 18.4, Thursday 20.4, Monday 24.4, Sunday 30.4, Tuesday 2.5, Thursday 4.5, Monday 8.5, Wednesday 10.5, Sunday 14.5, Tuesday 16.5, Thursday 18.5, Monday 22.5, Wednesday 24.5, Sunday 28.5, Tuesday Thursday 30.5 Monday 1.6, Wednesday 5.6
It's good to hear that the criminals will at least finally be confronted with all the damage they caused. I wish they would pay for all the suffering they caused to people and the world and become poor, so that they could not cause any more damage.
All the best to Adv. Assaf Fink. Blessings to you and also to journalist Nega Karmi, CEO of Hai Fe website. Good morning and have a wonderful day.
pay attention,
Most of the companies are represented by the same lawyers from the same offices. As in any lawsuit, the main financial gainers are the lawyers. Just reading the Semitic list of the factories and companies, it is possible to guess how much money those 4-5 lawyers who represent most of the companies will make in the end, they will surely laugh all the way to the bank while the deceased, the sick (still) and the family members of both groups, cry, cry and cry .
Well done and good luck
Excellent!