Note: Specific names of people are used here because according to Jewish law, while there is a requirement not to commit "loshen hara" - slander and bearing false witness or damaging someone's good name; there is also an obligation to protect others from being cheated or damaged. Too often, people remain silent because they don't want to hurt someone, and in the end, they hurt more people. Example - we took an architect who was known to be incompetent, unprofessional, etc. but people in our neighborhood didn't want to say anything against him. When he did a horrible job (bathrooms that didn't have space for a toilet, two sliding doors that would have been about 22 centimeters/10 inches wide...each, etc.), and then ran off the job without telling us, people shook their heads and said yeah, they weren't surprised. We lost tens of thousands of NIS because of him...because people were so worried about loshen hara, they allowed injustice to prevail.
Below, two names are mentioned - both were dishonest and caused us financial damage - caveat emptor - buyer beware).
For many immigrants, one of the hardest things to cope with is the logic of the court in Israel. Many come from countries where justice is handled differently - at least in the case of Americans. We are used to the jury system; used to the idea that there is law and the courts rule according to law. The jury is presented with the law, which is often black or white, and told to answer the simple question - was the law broken? Yes...or no.
Here in Israel, there is no jury system. Rather, there is a judge who often takes the law as a suggestion rather than a rule. They interpret what the law was intended to accomplish and they apply shades and shades and shades of gray to the law. In short, no one going into court can ever really anticipate what the judge will decide. In layman's terms, what this means is that it's a crapshoot what will happen and I think because the judges in Israel like this, they also ensure that most people walk out of court feeling less than satisfied. Or, put even more simply - it seems to be in the judge's interest for everyone to learn that there are no winners when some dispute reaches the level of needing the courts to intervene.
We've been to court too many times in Israel. The very first time was when I was 8 months pregnant and had stupidly trusted a car rental place. They gave us a lemon of a car, didn't complete the details of how many miles were on the car and the cost, and then committed fraud. They'd agreed to a rental price of 29 dollars a day (yes, I know that 20 years later that sounds insane, but it was a dump of a car, a dump of a business and in the end, a dump of a person running it.
The man told me to leave the contract in the glove compartment - my first stupid mistake. When the clutch on the car failed after 7 days (we'd called him and told him it wasn't working well but he claimed he had no other cars because it was around the holidays), we called the company. They showed up with another car and drove away with the rental car (and the agreement), nearly hitting my husband who stepped forward to stop them. He then had our copy of the agreement and his copy. He turned the 2 into a dollar sign by putting two lines through it - never mind that a 2 and an S go in opposite directions and you make a dollar sign by making an S and adding two lines $. Then he squeezed in a 5 between the "dollar sign" and the 9, saying we'd agreed to $59 and not $29.
They then sued us for 7,000 NIS for damages (never mind there was a tiny deductible). The judge looked at the two sides and told us (actually it was the insurance company that had to pay because they gave us the rental car as part of the agreement when our car was stolen) to pay 3,500 NIS. The dishonest man said he wouldn't accept 3,500 NIS. The judge told him, "you'll accept 4,000 NIS." And he did.
It was over in 10 minutes. I was astounded. I felt betrayed. For this, you brought me down here, I accused the insurance people? So you could make a deal with this crook?
The next time I was in court was after we'd bought a house from Shuki Shtauber and he didn't tell us that he didn't have a building permit and so we'd have to either buy it without that or wait. On the advice of our lawyer, we waited and even tried to help him get the permit. Only problem was, when it came to the last minute, he was alerted to a major violation.
He didn't tell us about the violation - instead, he signed an agreement with the land authorities that divided the property we were buying differently than our contract (meaning he sold us one division but declared another). That legal division meant neither side had legal parking and the family that rented the other side decided they had the right to take land from both agreements.
That time we won - the courts awarded us full damages of over 50,000 NIS to repair the violation. Only Shuki Shtauber never paid it and as of the last accounting, he owes us more than 250,000 NIS. We're still waiting. Every once in a while, he'll offer 50...60...70,000 NIS dating back to the sum he owed us over a decade ago.
Meanwhile, since he has declared that he doesn't legally own anything, he's able to continue to advise people about doing business, promoting themselves, etc. while we get nothing. Great court case...for all that it's worth.
As you can see, the legal system in Israel isn't ideal.
We've tried to avoid court as much as any sane human being, but we've also learned. When I was called into court a few months ago by the synagogue that operates across the hall from our offices, I went in with pictures showing how they operate in violation of the law, the men harass women in the name of the importance of their prayers, etc.
That time, the judge was amazing. She...yes...she looked at the men, looked at each of the pictures I slowly put in front of her showing the men standing in front of our door blocking our entry, leaning against our window, etc. Then she told them no, you can't use YOUR microphone but say she can't use her's. No, you can't...
This week, I thought I might have to be in court two more times. The first was because during a difficult period economically, we paid pensions for our employees, except for four (mine, my husband's, and two of my children who work in the company). These were paid at the end of last year...but to a different company because we didn't like working with Harel.
Harel turned around and, without informing the "workers" involved, took my company to court. The courts said we had to pay (which of course we did have to pay and which, of course, we had already paid), and gave us 30 days to respond. We responded with proof that we'd paid a different company and happily told Harel to go jump in the lake.
That settled, Harel's lawyers came and told us that we had to pay THEM 4,000 NIS for their work. Um...no. They threatened us, ridiculed us, and then, finally told us that on Sunday (yesterday), there was a hearing in which we would be told by the courts that we had to pay.
I think we surprised the lawyers by telling them that we were going to attend. That we were going to show the courts Harel's incompetence (sending letters to a location where the company hasn't been for more than 12 years)...even though they knew our correct address, etc. On Thursday, the lawyers called again and gave us one last chance to pay. They even offered to lower the amount if we agreed to pay and avoid the court hearing.
We told them to jump in the lake again (for those who don't know the cultural reference - we told them no). Last Thursday, they sent us an email. Because we were refusing to cooperate, they were appealing to the courts to cancel the hearing and refund their money for the court fees.
In other words, they surrendered. No fees...justice.
And the second case...last year in July, my telephone was stolen. The next day, I went to Pelephone's office in Talpiot and spoke to Nofar Sassoon. Instead of giving me just the SIM card I asked for, she worked up a whole package of free stuff in exchange for our signing our six corporate lines for three years. I took the deal and got a Galaxy S6 which wasn't the newest or greatest phone on the market, even then, but it met my needs and solved my having to go out and buy another phone (which isn't that big a deal).
Got home and people told me the deal was too good to be true. So I wrote an email to Pelephone's business department - told them what the deal was and told them to confirm it or we'd return everything and cancel. They confirmed that our business would pay the agreed upon amount and not be charged for the equipment, as Nofar had promised.
Fast forward three months and I realized that what Nofar did was switch addresses and charge me personally rather than the company. I got smarter this time. I stopped the credit card and told Pelephone - no way, I sent you an email THE DAY THE BUSINESS DEAL WAS MADE...You CONFIRMED it...no way.
Lawyers threatened, called to ridicule us and abuse us on the phone...and then when we again sent them the email and a choice - take all the equipment back or live up to the deal, they agreed to take the equipment back.
So, I'm on my way today to the lawyer's office to give them the equipment. I still need them to reimburse me for the 1,000 NIS they took from my account without permission. So wish me luck, please and remember...
In a country that too often says, "Don't be right, be smart" - try to be both. Be smart and be right.
Maybe it took me 20+ years to get here but I'm learning. I didn't buckle under the pressure of the lawyers from Harel and I didn't buckle under the pressure from the lawyers from Pelephone.
And I learn - if I ever use Pelephone again, I will make sure (again) that everything is in writing (and I won't trust Nofar Sassoon). And I won't have to deal with Shuki Shtauber...though it would be nice if he would pay us what he owes us...even 50% would be more reasonable than what he's offered us all these years...
And I will continue to believe that you can be smart AND right.
Below, two names are mentioned - both were dishonest and caused us financial damage - caveat emptor - buyer beware).
For many immigrants, one of the hardest things to cope with is the logic of the court in Israel. Many come from countries where justice is handled differently - at least in the case of Americans. We are used to the jury system; used to the idea that there is law and the courts rule according to law. The jury is presented with the law, which is often black or white, and told to answer the simple question - was the law broken? Yes...or no.
Here in Israel, there is no jury system. Rather, there is a judge who often takes the law as a suggestion rather than a rule. They interpret what the law was intended to accomplish and they apply shades and shades and shades of gray to the law. In short, no one going into court can ever really anticipate what the judge will decide. In layman's terms, what this means is that it's a crapshoot what will happen and I think because the judges in Israel like this, they also ensure that most people walk out of court feeling less than satisfied. Or, put even more simply - it seems to be in the judge's interest for everyone to learn that there are no winners when some dispute reaches the level of needing the courts to intervene.
We've been to court too many times in Israel. The very first time was when I was 8 months pregnant and had stupidly trusted a car rental place. They gave us a lemon of a car, didn't complete the details of how many miles were on the car and the cost, and then committed fraud. They'd agreed to a rental price of 29 dollars a day (yes, I know that 20 years later that sounds insane, but it was a dump of a car, a dump of a business and in the end, a dump of a person running it.
The man told me to leave the contract in the glove compartment - my first stupid mistake. When the clutch on the car failed after 7 days (we'd called him and told him it wasn't working well but he claimed he had no other cars because it was around the holidays), we called the company. They showed up with another car and drove away with the rental car (and the agreement), nearly hitting my husband who stepped forward to stop them. He then had our copy of the agreement and his copy. He turned the 2 into a dollar sign by putting two lines through it - never mind that a 2 and an S go in opposite directions and you make a dollar sign by making an S and adding two lines $. Then he squeezed in a 5 between the "dollar sign" and the 9, saying we'd agreed to $59 and not $29.
They then sued us for 7,000 NIS for damages (never mind there was a tiny deductible). The judge looked at the two sides and told us (actually it was the insurance company that had to pay because they gave us the rental car as part of the agreement when our car was stolen) to pay 3,500 NIS. The dishonest man said he wouldn't accept 3,500 NIS. The judge told him, "you'll accept 4,000 NIS." And he did.
It was over in 10 minutes. I was astounded. I felt betrayed. For this, you brought me down here, I accused the insurance people? So you could make a deal with this crook?
The next time I was in court was after we'd bought a house from Shuki Shtauber and he didn't tell us that he didn't have a building permit and so we'd have to either buy it without that or wait. On the advice of our lawyer, we waited and even tried to help him get the permit. Only problem was, when it came to the last minute, he was alerted to a major violation.
He didn't tell us about the violation - instead, he signed an agreement with the land authorities that divided the property we were buying differently than our contract (meaning he sold us one division but declared another). That legal division meant neither side had legal parking and the family that rented the other side decided they had the right to take land from both agreements.
That time we won - the courts awarded us full damages of over 50,000 NIS to repair the violation. Only Shuki Shtauber never paid it and as of the last accounting, he owes us more than 250,000 NIS. We're still waiting. Every once in a while, he'll offer 50...60...70,000 NIS dating back to the sum he owed us over a decade ago.
Meanwhile, since he has declared that he doesn't legally own anything, he's able to continue to advise people about doing business, promoting themselves, etc. while we get nothing. Great court case...for all that it's worth.
As you can see, the legal system in Israel isn't ideal.
We've tried to avoid court as much as any sane human being, but we've also learned. When I was called into court a few months ago by the synagogue that operates across the hall from our offices, I went in with pictures showing how they operate in violation of the law, the men harass women in the name of the importance of their prayers, etc.
That time, the judge was amazing. She...yes...she looked at the men, looked at each of the pictures I slowly put in front of her showing the men standing in front of our door blocking our entry, leaning against our window, etc. Then she told them no, you can't use YOUR microphone but say she can't use her's. No, you can't...
This week, I thought I might have to be in court two more times. The first was because during a difficult period economically, we paid pensions for our employees, except for four (mine, my husband's, and two of my children who work in the company). These were paid at the end of last year...but to a different company because we didn't like working with Harel.
Harel turned around and, without informing the "workers" involved, took my company to court. The courts said we had to pay (which of course we did have to pay and which, of course, we had already paid), and gave us 30 days to respond. We responded with proof that we'd paid a different company and happily told Harel to go jump in the lake.
That settled, Harel's lawyers came and told us that we had to pay THEM 4,000 NIS for their work. Um...no. They threatened us, ridiculed us, and then, finally told us that on Sunday (yesterday), there was a hearing in which we would be told by the courts that we had to pay.
I think we surprised the lawyers by telling them that we were going to attend. That we were going to show the courts Harel's incompetence (sending letters to a location where the company hasn't been for more than 12 years)...even though they knew our correct address, etc. On Thursday, the lawyers called again and gave us one last chance to pay. They even offered to lower the amount if we agreed to pay and avoid the court hearing.
We told them to jump in the lake again (for those who don't know the cultural reference - we told them no). Last Thursday, they sent us an email. Because we were refusing to cooperate, they were appealing to the courts to cancel the hearing and refund their money for the court fees.
In other words, they surrendered. No fees...justice.
And the second case...last year in July, my telephone was stolen. The next day, I went to Pelephone's office in Talpiot and spoke to Nofar Sassoon. Instead of giving me just the SIM card I asked for, she worked up a whole package of free stuff in exchange for our signing our six corporate lines for three years. I took the deal and got a Galaxy S6 which wasn't the newest or greatest phone on the market, even then, but it met my needs and solved my having to go out and buy another phone (which isn't that big a deal).
Got home and people told me the deal was too good to be true. So I wrote an email to Pelephone's business department - told them what the deal was and told them to confirm it or we'd return everything and cancel. They confirmed that our business would pay the agreed upon amount and not be charged for the equipment, as Nofar had promised.
Fast forward three months and I realized that what Nofar did was switch addresses and charge me personally rather than the company. I got smarter this time. I stopped the credit card and told Pelephone - no way, I sent you an email THE DAY THE BUSINESS DEAL WAS MADE...You CONFIRMED it...no way.
Lawyers threatened, called to ridicule us and abuse us on the phone...and then when we again sent them the email and a choice - take all the equipment back or live up to the deal, they agreed to take the equipment back.
So, I'm on my way today to the lawyer's office to give them the equipment. I still need them to reimburse me for the 1,000 NIS they took from my account without permission. So wish me luck, please and remember...
In a country that too often says, "Don't be right, be smart" - try to be both. Be smart and be right.
Maybe it took me 20+ years to get here but I'm learning. I didn't buckle under the pressure of the lawyers from Harel and I didn't buckle under the pressure from the lawyers from Pelephone.
And I learn - if I ever use Pelephone again, I will make sure (again) that everything is in writing (and I won't trust Nofar Sassoon). And I won't have to deal with Shuki Shtauber...though it would be nice if he would pay us what he owes us...even 50% would be more reasonable than what he's offered us all these years...
And I will continue to believe that you can be smart AND right.
Hear, Hear!
ReplyDeleteYes, Paula,
ReplyDeleteit is better to love justice and suffer loss than to gain profit through fraud.
All the scammers will experience this painfully.
God's judgment is just.
I wish you God's peace in your heart.
No matter how God ends your story ... trust HIM ... that is true happiness :)
Paula,
ReplyDeleteYesterday I had read in your story:
"... In a country that too often says, "Don't be right, be smart" - try to be both. Be smart and be right. ..."
And today I have read these beautiful words:
"He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good;
and what doth YY require of thee,
but to do justly, and to love mercy,
and to walk humbly with thy Elohim?"
Micha 6.8
Paula, continue to walk with your God.