http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Admin/Mdf/rss/rssRead.asp Israel's leading corporate and securities law firm, GKH offers a complete range of legal services for organizations and individuals. en http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/155/ Hodak Committee Publishes Interim Report...Increasing Companies׳ Internal Controls and Enhancing Disclosure Requirements...Israeli Patent Commissioner Announces New Classification and Priority Treatment for ״Green״ Patent Applications...New Policy Regarding Participation in Arbitration Procedures in which the State of Israel is One of the Parties...Tax Law Updates... A Company׳s Failure to Transfer Social-Benefits Deductions from the Employee׳s Paycheck to Their Designated Purpose Serves as a Sufficient Reason for Piercing the Corporate Veil http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/154/ In contrary to the world "trend" to combat hidden bank accounts and tax-havens entities, a contradicting policy may be viewed in Israel, which recently amended its tax laws. Currently, Israel provides New Immigrants and Returning Residents with extreme tax benefits, including a 10-year tax exemption on foreign sourced income and gains, as well as no reporting requirements on such income or gains. http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/105/ TAX LAW UPDATES...LITIGATION UPDATES...LABOR LAW UPDATES... http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/25/ The Israel Securities Authority (“ISA”) was recently asked to address the issue of whether an offer of securities to existing Israeli shareholders of a foreign company requires an Israeli prospectus and compliance with Israeli securities law, where the Israeli offerees are but a fractional part of the offerees worldwide (whether by number or by percentage of holdings). http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/23/ The Israeli Income Tax Ordinance was amended as of January 1, 2009 (the "Amendment") to introduce, among other things, tax exemptions designed to stimulate and encourage foreign investments in Israel. http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/16/ A new amendment to the Israeli Communications Law prohibits the sending of commercial material by electronic means, such as emails, faxes, automated telephone systems and cellular text messages (SMS), unless a prior consent is provided by the addressee of such material. http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/20/ http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/21/ The Consumer Protection Law was recently amended by the Knesset (the "Amendment") to prevent certain "limited-period transactions" from being "automatically" renewed without obtaining the consumer's prior approval. The Amendment is expected to impact the way Israeli businesses structure their membership and subscription offers (for example, offers by cellular phone operators). http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/22/ Two important developments in the field of Israeli labor law that became effective on February 1, 2009 are likely to have material ramifications on labor practices: 24th Amendment to the Wage Protection Law, 5718-1958 (“Wage Protection Law”); and 12th Amendment to the Work and Rest Hours Law, 5711-1951 (“Work and Rest Hours Law”) http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/26/ On May 27, 2008, the Knesset passed an amendment to the Communications Law (Telecommunications and Broadcasting), 1982 (the "Amendment"), which deals with prevention of spamming and unsolicited content ("SPAM"). http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/27/ Employer's Right to Access Employee's e-mail; Employer's Burden of Proof Regarding Employee's Attendance; Duty to Specify Reasons for Termination; http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/28/ The Israeli Shekel has become legal tender internationally, now that Israel has been made an official member of the international CLS (Continuous Linked Settlement) Bank system. The CLS Bank system is a global multi-currency clearing system which is designed to eliminate time differences in settlement of currency trading, providing a safer foreign exchange (FX) market. http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/29/ Under important amendments to the Securities Regulations (Details, Structure and Form of Prospectus) 1969, a reporting corporation may be exempted from providing the description of its business in a prospectus if it had already done so in its annual report in the previous year and in its quarterly reports published since the annual report, provided that all material changes are described in the prospectus. http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/30/ As part of the ongoing effort by the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) to improve corporate governance and to reinforce transparency at Israeli publicly traded companies, on June 15 and July 6, 2008 new amendments to the securities regulations under the Israeli Securities Law, 1968, were published. http://gkh.sites.media4u.co.il/Eng/D4Content/MenuID/870/ID/31/ As trade relations between the member states of the European Union and Israel grow, it becomes increasingly important to understand the European Union competition law issues that may arise. One such issue is the possible injury a seemingly routine distribution agreement may cause to competition in the relevant markets.