ISRAEL Law and Practice Contributed by: Tal Keret, Shira Lahat, Neta Goshen Brami, Shira Cohen-Mazor and Shirly Mahlab Hefetz, Arnon, Tadmor-Levy
addition, while in ordinary civil proceedings the rule is that actual legal costs must be awarded in favour of the winning party and any deviation from this rule requires justification, the labour courts have a differ - ent approach. The labour courts consider it important to preventing an increase in the cost of proceedings concerning labour and social security rights. This approach means the courts tend to award much more moderate costs, which often do not reflect the actual costs incurred. The court considers a number of factors in determin - ing the amount of expenses to be awarded in favour of the winning party, including the nature of the claim, the grounds of the claim, and the identity of the par - ties. In cases where the claim concerns rights under protective legislation and involves modest amounts, or raises important public and social questions that deserve examination, the court will tend not to award real costs against the plaintiff, even if the claim is unsuccessful in whole or in part. On the other hand, real costs will not be awarded against the employer if the employee is successful with claim.
Conversely, where the cause of action is based on contractual agreements and involves significant amounts of money, and the dispute is of a more com - mercial nature, the court will tend to award expenses that are closer to the real costs incurred. The identity of the parties also has a bearing on the range of expenses awarded. If the plaintiff is from a disadvantaged population group whose ability to access the courts easily is a protected interest, the court will tend to award moderate expenses. On the other hand, if the case involves parties who are both considered sophisticated businesspeople (for exam - ple, a CEO and an employing company), the expenses awarded are more likely to reflect the real expenses incurred.
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