ISRAEL Law and Practice Contributed by: Ronit Barzik-Soffer, Luiz Blanc and Rakefet Peled, Reinhold Cohn Group
Copyright Infringement When deliberating whether an act amounts to infringe - ment of copyright the following parameters, estab - lished by the Act, should be considered. For a work to benefit from the protection of the Act: • the work should be original and fixed in any form; • the work should not be an idea or procedure and method of operation; or mathematical concepts or facts or data; or news of the day; and • the work should not be a “design” as defined in the Patents and Designs Ordinance, unless the design is not used, or intended to be used, in industrial manufacture. Did the infringer violate the exclusive right of the own - er to use the work, or a substantial part thereof, for purposes allocated exclusively to the owner of the copyright under the Act? Are the acts in question included in the “permitted uses” as defined in the Copyright Act? 7.4 Prerequisites and Restrictions to Filing a Lawsuit There are no prerequisites for filing a trade mark or copyright lawsuit. However, while there is no formal requirement to send a warning letter before submit - ting the lawsuit, it is recommended practice to do so. 7.5 Lawsuit Procedure The magistrate and district courts have jurisdiction over trade mark and copyright infringement claims. A claim for compensation in an amount below ILS2.5 million and/or injunctive relief in an amount equal to or below ILS2.5 million, will be heard by the compe - tent magistrate’s court. Any claim for compensation of injunctive relief above ILS2.5 million, as well as any claim for injunctive relief the value of which cannot be estimated, will be heard by the competent district court. Costs that typically arise before filing a lawsuit relate to warning letters, negotiations, collection of evidence or preparing expert opinions (eg, in cases regarding software infringement and market surveys).
Foreign copyright owners do not need to register to bring infringement claims in Israel. 7.6 Declaratory Judgment Proceedings and Other Protections for Potential Defendants In exceptional cases, the infringer may file a claim for declaratory relief and request that the court declares that their actions do not constitute a violation of copy - right or trade mark (eg, when the dispute is over a legal matter that goes beyond the scope of the dis - pute between the specific parties). 7.7 Small Claims Under the Civil Procedure Regulations, the parties to copyright and trade mark disputes are usually directed by the court to consider the possibility of mediation at the early stage of the proceedings. The parties might also consider approaching an arbitrator. 7.8 Effect of Trade Mark and Copyright Office Decisions Trade mark and copyright decisions on infringement actions are exclusively provided by the courts. 7.9 Counterfeiting and Bootlegging There are no specific definitions for the term “coun - terfeit” and accordingly, goods bearing identical or confusingly similar trade marks are considered coun - terfeits. All procedures, remedies and statutes that are pertinent to a claim based in trade mark infringement are also relevant to counterfeiting goods, including civil and criminal liability. Regarding counterfeits or bootlegging of copyright – the remedies are compensation, statutory com - pensation with no need to prove damages (up to ILS100,000), injunctions, and collection and destruc - tion orders. The courts address counterfeits and/or bootlegging as copyright infringement. In addition, criminal procedures can be taken in cases of commercial trade or import for trade purposes of infringing copies. The maximum penalty is up to five years in prison.
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